Inferno
by mizzmox
Summary: Larkin Dixon had it all after she changed her life: a stable job, close friends, and a loving family. Suddenly when the harsh reality of the new world rears it's ugly head, everything Larkin has worked for slowly falls apart. Stuck in Los Angeles with people she barely knows, will Larkin succumb to her old ways or will someone be able to keep her humanity in check?
1. Chapter 1

_**Inferno**_

 _ **Rated: T**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own FTWD, TWD, or any other characters from different fandoms. I do own my OC's.**_

 _ **Chapter One: Discovery**_

 _I waited in the locker room for Lucco to swing by and get me before my match started. I looked at my taped up knuckles and sighed. Tonight was going to be an easy night. Apparently I was going against one of Rodman's newcomers tonight. Newcomers were always easy to defeat, mainly because they didn't know what the hell they were doing. Plus I would get $500 if I win and an extra $300 if I KO'ed her within the first five minutes. I took out the cross necklace my mother had gotten me before she passed away and kissed it, throwing up a prayer for good luck. I heard the door creak open and saw Lucco's face._

 _"Come on kid, it's time." he stated with his gruff voice as I nodded and got myself up._

 _I pulled my hoodie up as I walked out the door. Me and Lucco began walking down the familiar corridor that led to the fighting space. I heard the noisy crowd get louder as we made our way out into the open, and numerous cheers, hollars, catcalls, and insults were being shouted at me. Lucco patted my back, he always did before I went to a match. It meant stay focused. Don't get distracted. Winning comes from the heart, not from the mind. And most of all, he was proud of me. I saw my opponent waiting in the makeshift arena. She was skinny, and not toned at all. She looked more like a model than a fighter. I started to wonder if this was another one of Rodman's initiation schemes for his girlfriends he always did. He was such a cruel man, and him being a politician didn't help his case either. In Los Angeles, he was the squeaky clean assistant mayor with a beautiful wife and great kids. In the underground, he was a ruthless drug lord who slept with so many women I'm surprised he's clean (or so he says). I remember he tried to get me to go on a 'date' with him and Lucco had to set him straight._

 _The ref checked me and made sure I didn't have any weapons. I entered the makeshift ring and heard the ref announce us quickly. I went by Hernandez in the ring, despite my appearance. It was in honor of my mother's maiden name. The ref explained the rules quickly, and soon the bell rang. I decided to feel this opponent out. She came right up to me and started throwing some loose, and very lousy, punches. I dodged them quickly and tackled her to the ground. She left herself wide open and I started throwing blows to the head, as I wrapped my legs around her fighting for control. She tried hard to get me off, but I was stronger. Once I knew she was done for good, I managed to get her in an arm bar and pull as hard as I could I heard her scream. She began tapping out wildly saying she quit. She quit for good. It wasn't until the ref pulled me off of her and raised my hand, I was declared the winner. I saw Lucco grin and give me a thumbs up. I saw Rodman's ugly face call for a rematch and his girl was left clutching her arm in pain. I walked over to the girl and she looked up at me in anger._

 _"If I were you I would leave Rodman. He's a piece of shit anyways." I told her before turning my heel and walking away with Lucco holding an envelope with the prize money._

()

I woke up to the familiar and dreading sound of my alarm clock. I practically slapped the thing out of its place on my desk. I looked at the time and my face fell back into the pillow. It was 7am. I had to get ready and be at work by 10am. I worked at a local mechanic shop as a front desk agent, basically checked people out and offer any help when the main mechanics were busy. I got up from bed and headed to the bathroom to get ready for the day. I showered, brushed my teeth, and put on my clunky uniform. I didn't bother to do anything fancy to my hair, I pulled it up into a wet ponytail and left my face makeup less. I grabbed my keys for my motorcycle and my backpack containing my belongings. I was never a purse kind of girl. I walked out of my small apartment and locked the door. I got on my motorcycle and texted my friend Reid I would be there in 10 minutes to take him to school.

Reid and I grew up together, he was the first friend I made when me and my mom moved to Los Angeles. He was younger than me by three years, but it never really showed much. He was an only child and grew up around adults, so I figured that's why we got along so well. I looked to him as a little brother. I pulled up to Reid's house and he was waiting outside his guarded mansion. Reid came from a wealthy family; his family owned a winery in northern California and he lived on the rich side of town. Me pulling up in front of his house was a funny sight to see just because I looked all raggedy compared to him. Reid was on the phone when I pulled up and gestured for me to give him a minute. I looked at my watch and nodded, leaning my motorcycle to the side. Reid's face looked very concentrated. Finally after a couple of minutes, he hung up the phone.

"Hey, who was that?" I greeted Reid as he sighed.

"They found Nick." He answered grimly.

My breath hitched up in my throat. My heart felt like it had stopped for a second.

"…what?" I squeaked as Reid nodded.

"He got hit by a car. He was running in the street apparently." Reid explained to me, shifting his foot from one to the other.

"Drugged up again?" I asked as Reid shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know to be honest." Reid sighed heavily. "I looked over my class syllabus and we aren't doing anything special in class today. Can you drop me off at the hospital? I can take the bus back home afterwards."

"Yeah…put your helmet on." I told him reeving up the engine.

Reid did as he was told and we took off to the hospital Nick was at. It blew my mind. I hadn't seen Nick for over three months. He was one of Reid's best friends, also growing up with him. I hung out with Nick a few times, he was a cool guy, but he was into hardcore drugs and I wasn't okay with that. Don't get me wrong I've done my fair share of vices back in the day, but Nick had a choice to stop and he didn't want too. He was also a main reason why Reid had gotten alcohol poisoning a year ago, so I wasn't fond of him too much after that incident. But needless to say, Reid was still Nick's friend and I had to care about the guy if not for my sake, Reid's sake.

We pulled up to the hospital. I stopped the motorcycle to drop Reid off. He pursed his lips, thinking again.

"You want to come and say hi?" Reid asked, "I'm sure he'd want to see you…"

I thought about it. Nick always looked up to me for advice for certain things. In a way I felt like I was one of the adults in his life that helped him out when he needed it. He used to talk to me about his life, his parents, his sister Alicia, and his addiction. I would say he reminded me of a little brother, but I can't. He was different. I felt different towards him than I did Reid. Nick was 19, but seeing the world through the eyes of a mature individual after everything he had experienced and went through. To say I had a crush on the kid would be weird. But I did enjoy his company. Only time would tell if anything actually happened between me and him. For all I know, Nick could just see me as some ugly, old, 23 year old mechanic with cougar instincts.

"I've got to get to work Reid," I told him, uneasy about walking into a hospital.

I hadn't walked into a hospital since my mom passed away. It had been six years ago, but it still haunted me to this day. Reid frowned a little bit.

"Come on Lark, if anybody should see him, it should be you. You've been worrying about him for three months." Reid pointed out as I sighed heavily looking at my clock.

I did have time to go in there and say hi. And Reid was giving me the puppy dog look I couldn't say no to him. I parked my motorcycle to the side of the road alongside the other cars. I removed my keys and put them in my pocket. I saw a ghost of a smile on Reid as we walked into the hospital together. I kind of tensed up seeing the nurses and doctors with their white coats. I tried hard not to have any flashbacks of when I would be with my mom in here. She was put on bedrest for a long time until she passed. We finally made it to the right floor and I saw a couple of people waiting in the waiting room.

"Reid!" piped up a petite and very pretty brunette.

The brunette went up and hugged Reid. This must've been Alicia. Nick's sister. She was young, probably a little younger than Reid by a few years. I used to hear Nick rave about how she made perfect scores and did so well in school and life in general. Last time I heard, she had a full on scholarship to UC Berkley next fall. She must've been a smart kid. Her blue eyes looked at me and she raised an eyebrow.

"This is Larkin." Reid introduced me as I nodded in agreement. I stuck out my hand and she took it.

"Alicia." she introduced herself, "Nick's sister."

"He used to talk about you all the time," I replied giving her a warm smile, reassuring her Nick was always thinking about her.

"She's a good friend of mine. And Nick." Reid reiterated as Alicia nodded.

"Mom and Travis are in there talking to him." Alicia informed us. "I already talked to him. He seems…well…like Nick."

"I guess that's good." Reid said.

Reid and Alicia small talked for a while as I sat in the room waiting. After a good half hour, a Hispanic man and a blonde, stern-looking woman walked out of the patient dorm. I stood up and Reid hugged the woman and greeted the man. I figured out the woman was Nick's mom, but had no idea who the guy was. I knew for certain this wasn't Nick's dad. Nick had shown me a picture of his dad before he had passed. The two looked in my direction and I greeted them.

"This is Larkin," Reid introduced me again, "A good friend of me and Nick's."

"I've heard about you," the mother replied as I looked at her surprised, "I'm Madison Clark. This is Travis, my partner."

I shook both their hands, and Madison said we could go in and see Nick. My hands started sweating and feeling clammy as we went through the doors. I saw other patients hooked up on machines and needles. I began to feel nervous and felt myself getting sick. I hated hospitals. Hated them with a passion. Why'd I even agree to come? Finally we found his room, the blinds were closed. Reid nudged me to follow him and we walked in. I noticed Nick had a roommate, an old man, who was separated by a curtain.

My eyes widened as I allowed myself to look at Nick. I saw restraints around his wrists and he looked ghastly. This isn't how I remembered him three months ago. Reid sighed heavily, already used to his appearance. I knew Nick relapsed, but damn son. This was the worse than I'd ever seen him. His hair was longer than I last saw him and it was messy and tangled. His skin was very pale, and he looked deathly skinny. I felt like I was seeing a live corpse. Reid and Nick were talking but I tuned them out. I felt real bad for the kid. But what else could I do than be there for him? I remember telling him numerous times to get off the drugs, even when Reid stopped drinking he offered Nick to go to the rehab center he went too. Suddenly a voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Never thought I'd see you in a hospital," Nick joked as I tried to smile.

"Well if it wasn't you, I wouldn't." I replied smiling back before sitting on the edge of his bed beside Reid. "What the hell happened?"

Nick looked up to the ceiling in deep thought. He sat himself up before taking a deep breath.

"Everybody thinks I'm crazy." Nick began. "Everybody thinks it was all a part of a high. I know it was real."

"What was real?" Reid asked raising an eyebrow.

"I…okay remember Gloria?" Nick asked Reid as I tried my hardest not to snort.

"Yeah…what about her?"

"We decided to shoot up at the church with some other guys. It was all fun and games right? Then I fell asleep. I promise she was right beside me the whole time. Next thing I know, I wake up…and I don't see her there." Nick explained with a shaky breath, "I go down the stairs to see where everyone went. I thought I was dreaming. I saw blood everywhere and figured a deal went wrong or something. I was used to it…until I saw Gloria EATING a guy named Marly."

I looked at Nick's eyes and they looked frightened as hell. In my years underground, my trainer taught me how to read a person's eyes. That's how you found out the truth. And as crazy as it sounded…Nick WAS telling the truth. I mean, how in the world a person turns into a cannibal is beyond my mind. But then again drugs were involved. Maybe the drugs made Gloria go insane? Reid pinched the bridge of his nose. I know he was trying to think of some rational explanation. Reid was never the guy who went by faith; he needed facts. Answers. He was always the sane guy in any situation.

"You sure it wasn't the drugs Nick?" Reid asked and added in before Nick could speak, "I mean did the drugs make Gloria go crazy or something? Was it laced with anything else you probably didn't know?"

Nick stayed quiet for a second trying to recall the incident.

"Nick, it's a hard thing to believe, but…if you said it happened I believe you." I told Nick gently as his brown eyes looked at me.

"Besides that Nick, isn't it time to come home finally?" Reid asked him, "We all miss you. We want Nick back-"

"I'm trying the best I can Reid," Nick snapped a bit irritated.

"That's the same excuse I keep hearing man," Reid replied sternly.

"Look Nick, we understand how tough drug addiction is on a person." I piped up, "My uncle was like you. I don't want you to end up like him. Me and Reid care about you way too much."

"We don't want you to end up dead on the streets. You deserve better than that Nick." Reid finished off.

A couple of minutes passed before Nick responded. He just sat there thinking. I think we all sat there thinking.

"I'm going to get better guys," Nick promised before looking at us, "Have patience with me okay?"

"We've been patient for a while, but how many more incidents like this have to happen before you realize it?" I asked Nick as he frowned greatly.

"Larkin-" Nick began but was cut off by the sounds of the nurse coming in.

"I'm sorry but visiting hours are over," the nurse said, "Only family are allowed at this point."

"Hold on these guys are-" Nick was about to argue until Reid got up.

"It's fine, you take care of my boy," Reid told the nurse sternly as he patted his friend on the shoulder. "Get better soon okay? I'll be checking up with your mom everyday."

"We will see you later Nick," I said as I gave him an awkward side hug. "You need anything I'm there for you."

Nick nodded and his sad eyes were killing me as me and Reid walked out of the room. I saw Nick's family still in the waiting room, apparently talking about who would watch over Nick for the day. I checked my clock and needed to start heading to work or I'd be late. Reid shooed me out, telling me he would hitch a ride on the bus back to his place. I thanked him and said my goodbyes to the family. They seemed like nice people. I walked out of the hospital, breathing in the fresh air once I stepped outside. Thank God it was good to be alive and healthy. I reeved up my motorcycle from the parking lot and headed towards Style & Co. Mechanics.

()

"Holy shit! Look who's here on time!" cried out a tall, scruffy bald guy as I raised an eyebrow and clocked in.

"Shut the hell up Luke," I sneered back at the man as he snickered out the door.

"Morning Lark, how are ya?" asked a shorter, more attractive version of Luke as he leaned lazily against the front desk.

Karl and Luke were brothers, but looked insanely different. Apparently Karl looked like his mother, while Luke inherited his father's side of the family. They were good friends with AJ, the guy who owned the joint, and they were a small, start-up type of company. AJ didn't necessarily want to build an empire, he just wanted to help people doing what he did best: fix cars for a cheap and reasonable price in LA. Their business started five years ago, and I came in the picture about two years ago. So we've all been together for a long time. We were like our own little family. We've had seasonals come and go, but us five stuck together like glue.

"Peachy as always Karl, have we've been busy?" I asked as Karl shook his head and sipped his coffee.

"Nah, just a couple of people getting check-ups and inspections done. Nothing major." Karl replied.

"Where's AJ and Finn?" I asked looking over the quotas before filing them in the cabinets.

"Beats me. Finn is taking the late shift. AJ is…well he was in his office." Karl tried recalling where he last saw our boss. "He isn't feeling well."

"Ouch. Bossman? Sick?" I asked.

AJ being sick was almost unheard of. He had perfect attendance and even when he was sick, he always made it to the shop and never admit it. The fact Karl picked up on it must've meant AJ had the flu or something awful. I excused myself to the back and knocked on the door. A rough "come in" greeted my ears and I opened the door slowly. I saw AJ with heavy bags under his eyes and a runny nose. He had on a long sleeve and a jacket even though it was above 70 degrees out. His shoulder length brown hair was disheveled and his blue eyes looked so unfocused. AJ looked at me and covered his mouth as he coughed.

"You know you could stay home." I told him as AJ snorted.

"And leave those knuckleheads to return calls? Please." AJ replied back.

"No offense but you look awful."

"I know, it's irritating. I never get sick."

"Is it the flu or something?"

"I guess. On and off fevers, chills, decrease in appetite, coughing, drainage, the whole nine yards kid." AJ answered, "And I've taken so many medicines. The doctors ran tests and I haven't gotten any word back yet."

"Sorry man, that sucks." I replied unsure of what to say. "I'm sure you'll feel better soon. Godspeed!"

AJ smiled and sniffled until he handed me some papers, "If you could doll, call these fellas for me and tell them they were given our discounted price for our work on their car."

"Sure, you need anything I'm in the front, okay?" I reassured my boss as he nodded.

"Go head, thanks Lark," AJ said as I went back to the front.

Minutes turned into hours and I was busy calling and dealing with customers and their transactions. Luckily a lot of them were in a good mood so I didn't have to bother with any of them in a more aggressive manner. We had a small TV on a local station in the corner of the room and most of the time it was mostly on for background noise. I was busy filing some invoices when I heard the door open. Finn was looking at the TV taking a sip from his coffee cup wearing his work shirt and a pair of black jeans. He looked sharp as ever with his dark brown hair in a neat side style and his beard trimmed to the T. I've always sort of had a crush on him, he was attractive in a rugged kind of way. He was probably a little shorter than AJ but taller than Karl, and very fit and lean. Unfortunately, he just saw me as one of the dudes, the chicks he would always date were tall, skinny, big boobs, and a big ass. I was the complete opposite. Average height, thick, and flat chested. But I did have an ass though. That's about as good as it gets.

"What's up Finn?" I asked as he nodded paying attention to the TV.

"You hear what's happening on the news?" he asked cocking his head towards the television.

I looked over and saw a news anchor reporting about some riots happening up North. Apparently this huge flu-like virus was going around and making a lot of people sick. I'm hoping AJ didn't have what those people had. Nick's words haunted me as I saw images of people attacking others despite being tased or shot at. Finn was glued to the TV for a second.

"Bet you it's some damn cult or drugs," Finn replied looking away. "Remember that dude in Florida who ate someone cause of bath salts?"

"Maybe…or maybe it's not even real and the government is using this as an excuse." I replied shrugging.

"You and your conspiracy theories," he chuckled as his green eyes met my blue ones. "How's this morning been?"

"Decent. Not as busy as usual, but we've got a couple of cars here and there," I answered, "AJ's in the office, and Karl and Luke are chilling outside. I thought you were taking the late shift?"

"AJ called me in early. Said we were closing up shop at 5 today." Finn replied as he walked towards the office to talk to AJ.

I started getting back to work and soon whatever was happening on TV drifted away from my mind.

()

 **"Larkin Dixon answer the phone girl! Damn why'd you even get one if you never use it? Anyways, your daddy wants to talk to ya. Call back."**

It was always a pleasure to hear Uncle Merle's messages on my voicemail. I had just parked my motorcycle in my parking space and saw I had a missed call. I called the number back while walking back up to my apartment. As I opened the door I heard a gruff, cranky voice answer it on the other line.

"What'd ya want?" answered the voice.

"Nice to hear from you too," I replied back walking into my room after locking the front door.

"Hey-ey! Finally baby girl calls back," Merle replied all cheekily as I rolled my eyes.

"I told you only my dad can call me that. Shouldn't you be at work?" I asked as I heard him clear his throat on the other line.

"I got the day off smartass," Merle responded as I chuckled.

"Didn't you have a day off yesterday too?"

"Are you a cop?"

"Nope."

"Then stop interrogating me."

"Make me."

"HEY DARYL! BABY GIRL IS ON THE PHONE!" Merle hollered over the phone and I had to move my phone from my ear.

I heard stomps, shuffling, and muttering until I finally heard my dad's voice.

"Baby girl!" my dad's animated voice exclaimed. "How are ya?"

"Doing good dad," I replied in my sweetest voice ever hearing a snort from Merle in the background. "Just got home from work."

"How was it?"

"Good. We had to close up shop early today. AJ got sick."

"Hope it's not that damn flu going around. Be sure not to catch it."

"I got my flu shot dad, I'm good." I answered. "I'm so ready to come visit down there."

"We are too. I made Merle clean up the guest room for you."

"Lovely. Will there be a rat in the bed too?"

"Be nice to your uncle, girl."

"Yeah you heard him!" Merle's voice popped out as I sighed, not understanding why my father always insisted to talk to me on speakerphone.

"And you stop antagonizing her!" Dad barked.

"What?" Merle asked.

"Stop antagonizing her!"

"Anta-what?"

"Antagonizing Merle!"

"What's that mean?!"

I was laughing over the phone. God Merle was such a dumbass sometimes. It amazed me how he graduated high school. Merle was more street smart than book smart. Always had been. He couldn't tell you what started the Civil War, but you needed help fixing the motor to a car and he could fix it up in a jiffy. My dad was one of the rare individuals who had equal knowledge in streets and books. Although for three years of my life I lived a "street" life, I was more book smart than anything. I even got a scholarship to SMU in Dallas, but didn't accept it because it was the same time my mother had passed away.

"What are you up to now?" Dad asked as I rummaged through the fridge for a second.

"Trying to figure out what's for dinner." I replied deciding between tuna casserole I made yesterday or heating up a frozen pizza.

"Ah, I figure you want some rest. Give me a call before you head down here alright? And no car renting, either me or Merle will pick ya up in the truck." Dad told me as I grabbed the tuna casserole and popped it into the microwave.

"You got it dad," I replied with a grin as I turned on the TV for background noise. "Love you and Merle."

"Love you too baby girl. Be safe."

I hung up the phone, grabbed my dinner, and nestled myself on the couch. The news was still going crazy about this virus thing. It was like when SARS happened in China years ago, everybody wouldn't shut up about it. I began thinking about what Nick described to me and frowned. What if something bad was about to happen? What would happen to us? I looked over to my disguised safe that held a picture of me and my family with a vase full of white shells on top of it. Inside held weapons I hadn't used in years.

And I hoped I never had to again.

 _ **Author's Note: Hey guys! It's been busy on my end balancing a demanding job and some personal things going on in my life. But luckily, writing has always been my go to hobby and has helped me release some stresses of reality. After rewriting and rethinking this story out from it's original rough draft, it makes so much more sense and has more character development for my characters and characters from the FTWD series. I'm excited to continue writing this, and will try my hardest and best to keep up with it. Reviews, questions, comments, and concerns are always welcomed whether its through DM or through the review page. I will try to put an Author's Note every once in a while to explain things or to answer or give shout outs. :)**_


	2. Chapter 2

**_Inferno_**

 ** _Rated: T_**

 ** _Disclaimer: I do not own TWD, FTWD, or any characters from other fandoms. I do own my OC's._**

 ** _Chapter Two: Life Going On  
_**

 _BANG._

 _One gunshot._

 _BANG._

 _Two gunshots._

 _BANG._

 _Three gunshots._

 _I knew that was the final blow when the man doubled over and a puddle of blood formed underneath his body. I realized I was holding the gun. My hands were shaking, tears streaming down my face. I opened my mouth to scream, but I couldn't. My shirt was ripped and my jeans were sitting on my hips. My hair in a disarray. This transaction ended up badly. If it wasn't for this gun, I would've been raped or killed as well. From the shadows I heard footsteps. Several footsteps. I pointed the gun in the direction of the unknown faces. There was only one face I recognized. Lucco. He was dressed to the nines with the other men following the same uniform code. Lucco simply pointed at the body and the men stuffed it in a bag and headed towards a different direction. I looked Lucco in the eye and threw the gun on the floor. Lucco retrieved it._

 _"I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS!" I screamed angrily as I walked up to him._

 _"This is what we've trained you for," Lucco coolly replied as I followed him out of the abandoned alleyway._

 _"LUCCO HE COULD'VE KILLED ME!" I shouted as he stopped in his tracks. "LOOK AT ME! YOU PROMISED YOU WOULD BE THERE. TO PROTECT ME."_

 _"I haven't gone back on my promise yet have I?" Lucco questioned eyeing me, "You knew I was keeping an eye from afar. You knew the signal. You're alive."_

 _"I DID THE SIGNAL AND YOU DIDN'T ANSWER YOU JACK-"_

 _"I wouldn't leave you to do something I know you couldn't do." Lucco stated before I finished, "You're a whole new breed Hernandez. That's why I plucked you from that shitty boxing gym."_

 _"Killing people isn't what I'm made for. You said I only had to fight. And win."_

 _"Nobody is ever made for killing people," Lucco's tone of voice changed drastically for a second, "You agreed to be my associate. I told you what was in this and you said you were ready."_

 _"LUCCO I KILLED SOMEONE!"_

 _"He owed me 50 grand and what does he do? Try to make a statement by hurting one of my associates. I was nice enough to have you go and negotiate an offer, and he saw that as weakness." Lucco coldly stated and he chuckled darkly. "Learned his lesson though."_

 _Lucco still saw my uneasiness about the situation. We began walking to the normal part of town. He gave me his suit jacket to cover my ripped shirt. I hastily put it on, and put my hair in a ponytail. I thanked him with a nod. My mind was swirling with so many thoughts. What just happened? Did I really kill someone? But it was for self-defense. What happened if somebody found out? I didn't hear any police sirens. I saw police officers and they didn't bat an eye when they saw me and Lucco pass by. We walked to the parking meter and Lucco opened the car door for me._

 _"Understand you won't ever get caught. Even if you turn yourself to the police, nobody will ever believe you. Your background checks and police records are clear as long as you're working for me. I suggest you forget about it and continue living life to the fullest." Lucco assured me as I got into the car and waited for the silent ride home._

()

Sometimes I think about my past. Sometimes I wonder if staying in LA was the best option when my mother died. I remembered Dad and Merle stayed here with me for two weeks after her passing helping me pack up her stuff and to celebrate my graduation. I was filled with anger and sadness at that time. Every little thing set me off. I was about to graduate high school that Sunday. My mom promised she would be out of the hospital by then. She promised me she would fight it. It didn't happen. I hated the fact God took my mother away from me. I hated the fact my teachers and friends walked on eggshells around me. I was over it. It took a lot of convincing from Dad and Merle to even go to the graduation ceremony. I remember looking at the stands, hoping this was some kind of sick joke. My mom would be there with her favorite white Maschino get up, pumps, and her hair perfect like always. Her brown eyes would sparkle and her beautiful smile would shine through. Right as the ceremony ended and students threw their hats in the air, I lost it. I bawled out of the arena and sat in the bathroom stall for a good hour until Charlotte, my godmother, came in and comforted me.

Nicola Hernandez-Dixon was my mother, my best friend, my everything. She was the one there to laugh with, to cry with, my rock and my shield for all these years when I wasn't with my Dad. I remembered the day she told me the doctor had diagnosed her with leukemia, I didn't think much of it. She didn't act sick either for a long time. But in my naïve head, I knew she was going to get better. Only people who were really sick died, she caught it just in time. Nothing would happen. It wasn't until I came home from a party and found her unconscious that I realized it was bad. I watched as EMT's rushed through her posh penthouse and take her to the hospital. I went in there and watched them poke holes into my mother; hooking her with IV's making sure she was still alive. I remembered Charlotte calling my dad and telling him what was going on. During my high school years, me and my dad didn't talk much and I didn't visit as often. I was way into the high style life then and my mother gave me so much freedom compared to my Dad.

My mom was the daughter of a wealthy businessman who had moved to Atlanta to expand his brand. She lived a very high styled lifestyle ever since the day she was born. She was familiar with the finer things in life, and was in her own little bubble. She met my dad in high school, but was told to stay away from him because he was a troublemaker and an outcast. Instead of doing what she was told, she ended up befriending my father and the two became inseparable. My grandparents didn't like my father, and there was a short time they kicked my mother out while she was in community college because of it. That's when my mom fell in love with the humble, country life and dropped out of school. She lived with my dad and Merle for a while, and that's when they decided to take things to the next level and get married. After they got married, Merle got a trailer of his own to give the two privacy and space. Not to long after, I was conceived and born. It wasn't until I was 8, things started getting heated between my mom and my dad.

()

 _"Nicola, calm down. Baby girl's asleep." I heard my dad say as I sat there behind the wall by the edge of door in my room._

 _I knew mom and dad were arguing again. They have been doing that lately. If it wasn't dad screwing up something, it was mom bickering at him that he wasn't doing anything. I held onto my red, patchwork stuffed horse Dad got me at the fair while listening to their conversation._

 _"Daryl, I'm tired of this." I heard my mom say._

 _"Tired of what?" my dad questioned as he sighed heavily, "Nicola, damn it, I've been working my ass off for you ever since we got married. I've been giving you what we need-"_

 _"That's the point Daryl!" She exclaimed, "You always give me what I need. What about what I want?"_

 _"I told you, you could go back to school." my dad said, "I even told you my job is willing to work with me so I can drop off and pick up Larkin from school. Hell even Merle-"_

 _"Merle isn't taking care of MY daughter alone."_

 _"That's HIS niece and MY brother," I heard my dad get agitated by my mother's tone of voice. "What's gotten into you lately? Where did this prissy attitude come from?"_

 _Mom never did care much for Uncle Merle, especially after he starting doing some kinds of drugs I've heard that weren't good for you. But dad was right. My mom did have an attitude from time to time, and I've noticed it. She never let me play outside with the other trailer park kids, and always made me act and dress like a lady in public. We also have been visiting Grandpa and Grandma a whole lot more than I could ever remember at their huge house._

 _"Daryl, this isn't working out anymore. We are just from two different worlds."_

 _"Let me guess, your daddy told you that one," my dad spat harshly._

 _"I miss my life in the city Daryl! I love the country, I honestly do, but it's not me."_

 _"Then we'll move to the city! If that's what you want. I can put aside my differences-"_

 _"I just want me and Larkin to go to the city,"_

 _Silence fell upon them for a second. I noticed I held my breath in as soon as my mom said that. Why did she just want me and her to go to the city? Where was daddy going to be?_

 _"What?" my dad asked in such a shocked and sad tone._

 _"I want a divorce." my mother uttered those infamous words, "Daryl, I love you, but I can't keep pretending anymore. This isn't who I am. I'm not happy. And I know you haven't been happy either. We've tried to work it out-"_

 _"So all these years we spent together you just want to end it?!" I heard my dad exclaimed. "What did your dad promise you this time?! Fancy school, fancy car, fancy life if you divorce your husband?! Isn't that the reason why you left your prissy life Nicola? Because it was all fake and I was the only real thing in your life?!"_

 _"It's my decision!" I heard my mom exclaim back. "You haven't been a good husband alright?! All these years you've just cared about work, having a housekeeper, and showing me off to your friends! I want to do something in my life, I want someone to shower me with affection, and all YOU'VE done is hinder it! You made me move out, you made me marry you, and you made me have a baby when I wasn't read-"_

 _"Don't you dare bring Larkin into this." my father said angrily, "If you didn't want children, we shouldn't have planned early for one. You didn't say any of this when Larkin was born and we were happy as can be. I didn't hinder you from anything. Those were all YOUR decisions. And what the hell do you mean I don't show you affection?!"_

 _I tuned out this half of the conversation for a second just because of the stuff that followed after, until I heard my father bellow in anger._

 _"WHAT?!" my father shouted. "YOU…WHAT?!"_

 _"There's nothing there between us Daryl. I'm not….attracted anymore. I'm sorry!"_

 _"I thought you weren't in the mood and unlike you, I'm perfectly okay with that! But for you to go and have an affair?!" I heard my dad cry out, "It was with that David fucker your dad used to talk about wasn't it? Libby saw him back in town. I guess the phrase is true. Like father like daughter huh?!"_

 _"Don't you dare say that!"_

 _"You know what. Fine. Get the papers and I'll sign them. You're not happy, even after everything I've done for you and how much love I put for you, our family, and our home, then there's no reason to be here right?" my dad spat out, "I want you out of my house."_

 _"I'm taking Larkin," I heard my mom's footsteps come close to my door and I dashed in my bed and pretended to look asleep._

 _"No you aren't! It's 12 o clock at night, what's the matter with you?! Let the girl sleep!" I heard my dad bellow. "I said you get out!"_

 _"You're such a child! I'm coming back for her in the morning with the papers and we are going to discuss custody! I'll be damned if my baby grows up like you!"_

 _I heard the door slam._

 _It was deathly silent._

 _Until I heard a couple of sobs come from my father and a loud 'thud' on the floor._

 _I couldn't bear it any longer. I walked out of my room and saw my dad huddled over on the floor, tears streaming down his face. My dad was always the tough guy. He never cried or ever showed his other emotions. He was happy go-lucky around me, or stern when he needed to be. But never sad. And never angry. He saw me and held out his arms. I embraced him as hard as I could and he held me, rocking me back and forth gently. I asked him why he was crying. He looked at me and brushed my hair back behind my ear._

 _"You know how you get hurt whenever you fall and scrape yourself?" he told me gently as he wiped the tears from his eyes. I nodded. "I got hurt today baby girl."_

 _"What happened?" I asked playing stupid looking around, "Where's mom…?"_

 _"Your mom went to stay with your grandpa and grandma tonight." my dad replied, "She will be back in the morning."_

 _"Did you guys have a fight?"_

 _"Yeah…we will talk about it in the morning baby girl. You need your sleep. Come on."_

 _As Dad walked me back to my room, I felt pain inside my heart. I wanted to cry. What was going to happen now? I asked dad if he would sleep with me tonight, and he nodded. He held me until I fell asleep. I felt protected in my dad's arms, who was going to protect me and mom when he wasn't around? I could feel silent tears stream down my face as my dad hugged me tighter, and finally I let sleep overtake me._

()

I remember the next morning so clearly. My mom had come with an old friend of hers that was a lawyer. His name was David, the guy my dad was talking about. She got the papers signed, and took me with her. I saw my dad a lot before my mom announced we were moving to California with my grandparents and this new David character. My dad was furious, but there was nothing he could do. He had his visitation rights; he had me for the summer, spring break, holidays, and my birthday. I remember saying goodbye was the hardest thing to do. I was close to my dad, closer to him than my mom at the time. I cried a lot, and I remembered him promising we would see each other again real soon. The first two weeks into the move, I was depressed. That's when my mom introduced me to David's family. There was David's mom and dad, Richard and Tiffany, David's sister Charlotte, and her son Reid. They were more accepting of me than my grandparents were and that's when me and Reid officially became friends.

I was pondering in my thoughts while I was working. Today was once again another slow day. AJ had stayed home, he was feeling too sick to come into work. His wife actually was the one who called in for him, and Finn decided to close up early again today. Karl and Luke were messing around in the garage with the customers, and I smiled. Today had been a good day. And tomorrow I would be heading home to spend time with my dad and Merle. I was excited and all packed to go. Suddenly I heard my phone vibrating in my pants. I let it go to voicemail until I heard it vibrate again. I looked at my phone and saw it was Reid. I checked out the time, he should've been at his third class by now. I answered the phone since there was nobody in the shop besides Finn in the office.

"Hello?"

"Larkin!" I heard Reid's voice.

"Hey bud, how are-"

"Nick's missing!"

My heart stopped.

"What?" I asked not comprehending what he just said.

"I don't know what happened but Nick's missing. His mom just called me asking if I've heard from him. Larkin I don't know what to do…"

"Calm down. What happened?" I asked as I put down the sheets of paper I was going through.

"Nick got out of the hospital. My bet is he persuaded the nurse to let him out." Reid stated frantically. "I'm calling anybody that might know where he is. Hell, I even called his dealer and he hadn't seen him."

I looked at the time and sighed, "Okay, hey get to class. I'll pick you up after 3 and we can go search for him. I promise. I'll tell Finn I need to head out early."

"Thank you Lark. Thank you."

"Stop worrying. If anything Nick is under a bridge asleep for all we know." I reassured Reid as he agreed and hung up.

I knocked on the outside of Finn's door and heard a faint 'come in'. I walked in and saw him doing some paperwork with a pen behind his ear to sign off on a few things. He looked tired coming in today, I wondered if he had gotten any sleep last night. Or what was going on he didn't get sleep. Finn looked up and saw it was me and gave me a small smile.

"What's up Lark?" Finn asked as I sat down.

"I was wondering if I could leave early today," I told him.

"Wanting to start your vacation early?" Finn chuckled as I shook my head.

"Wish I could. Found out a friend of mine went missing…" I began as Finn's face fell.

"People are going missing like crazy nowadays. Jesus." Finn replied running his hand through his hair. "You know where he went?"

"I have an idea, just hoping it's the right one," I told him.

"Yeah, you can leave early. Hope you find him." Finn encouraged me as I thanked him and stood up to get back to work.

"And Lark,"

"Yeah?"

"Be careful." Finn worriedly told me. "And have fun on your vacation."

"I will." I reassured him with a smile, "Everything will be alright."

And I had no idea how those words would haunt me towards the end of the week.

()

I raced my ass towards Reid's school while keeping the lookout for Nick. I dropped off my motorcycle at the house and got into my pick-up truck. These days, I saw missing person posters left and right, along with some sickly people walking everywhere. Some were in the distance and they walked oddly with hoods on their heads. I saw police at practically every corner watching out for any potential rioters, since that's what was happening in every major city. I guess they didn't want LA to be next. I pulled up to the school and saw Reid waiting outside. He slid inside and shut the door, while I drove off. Reid told me Nick was underneath the overpass on the other side of town. Nick was the first person he called apparently, and the only. Reid was about to call his parents, until I shook my head.

"No don't do that," I told him, "There was a reason why Nick wanted it to just be you, so leave it at that."

"Yeah but it's his mom Lark. Wouldn't you want to know if your kid was found?" Reid stated as he sighed and sent a text. "There I just told her Nick texted me he was safe. That's it.

I nodded and took a right turn. We were almost there. I saw Reid looking at every overpass we passed by in hopes of seeing Nick. Finally I pulled over to the side of the road with my hazards on. Reid practically jumped out of the car and almost tripped making his way up to where Nick was sitting. I made sure no cops were around and followed suit, locking my car with my keys. Nick looked the same as yesterday, if not worse. He was obviously wearing someone else's clothes, they were too baggy and looked like they belonged to an old man. Nick and Reid were talking once I made my way up the concrete hill. I saw his brown eyes light up at the sight of me. Or maybe they didn't. Who knows?

"Nick why aren't you in the hospital?" I asked concerned kneeling down between the two. "What if you relapse?"

"I don't relapse Lark," Nick replied with a ghost of a smile on his face, "I've learned to control it by now."

"You'll be chunking buckets soon," I muttered and Nick frowned at me.

"Why are we here man?" Reid asked, "Is it money?"

"Hell no," Nick answered as he brought out a plastic gas station bag and showed off his pay as you go phone. "Had enough money to buy this and even bought myself a sandwich."

"So why are we here?" Reid asked again as Nick sighed. "Why not Madison? Alicia?"

"I love them," Nick tiredly responded, "but they don't get me like you guys do. Me, you, and Lark, we're a team. We know what it's like…well with the exception of Larkin but she's helped you get through it Reid."

Reid looked at me with a raised eyebrow and I shook my head. Now wasn't the time to correct Nick of my backstory. I would eventually tell him, but not now. I wanted him to believe I've been straight edge all my life and he could be too once he cut off the drugs. We sat there for a while, just listening to the cars zoom over us. I saw the sun setting and it was getting late. I wasn't going to leave Nick out here by himself. I stood up and Reid followed suit. I stuck my hand out to Nick and he shook his head.

"I'm not going back home," Nick stated.

"I'm not taking you home." I replied.

"Or the hospital."

"Didn't say the hospital either," I replied again still sticking my hand out, "I'm not letting you sleep outside. Take my hand, I'm taking you to my place."

Nick thought about it for a second and finally accepted my hand and I helped him up. All three of us crammed together in my pick up and I started on the way back to my place.

()

Nick followed me up the stairs as I grabbed my keys and opened up the front door. I dropped off Reid at home first since he had a huge exam in the morning. He kept on asking me if I would be okay with Nick alone. I'd hung out with the guy before alone, but for a whole night? That was going to be an adventure itself. I reassured Reid everything would be fine and I'd see him tomorrow before my plane set off in the afternoon. He nodded and got out of the car. Nick commented on Reid's home, how he imagined it smaller in the beginning. I reminisced on that too, but since Richard had his children and grandchildren living on their lands, he figured to make them guests houses to live in on the acres. As soon as I turned on the light and closed the door a familiar face greeted me and barked happily.

"Holy shit!" Nick exclaimed as he cowered behind me. "You have a dog?!"

I saw Trigger's big brown eyes light up at Nick and I, and I smiled. I knelt down and petted the German Shepard as he happily danced around at our arrival. Nick slowly calmed down and Trigger sniffed at him and licked at his hand. I gestured for him it was okay to pet him and Nick finally petted him. Trigger lead us to the living room and sat on his dog bed as me and Nick sat on my couch. I saw Nick inspecting the place. I didn't have much for a studio apartment, but I had the main essentials like a couch, TV stand, TV, a bookcase, a bed, and a drawer. On one side had my bench set and a couple of weights and a kettle ball. I was never one to invest decorations in my apartment. I never had the time or the girly motivation to do it.

"Nice place…" Nick stated feeling a bit uncomfortable in his new surroundings.

"I try to make it as homey as possible," I chuckled.

I went to the kitchen and refilled Trigger's food and water. Then an idea came up in my head as Trigger came and ate his newly refilled bowl. I grabbed two water bottles and passed one to Nick. He grabbed it and we sat on the couch in silence for a while watching whatever was on TV. I think it was some sitcom.

"So you're going home tomorrow?" Nick as I nodded while gulping some water down.

"Yeah just for a couple of days," I replied with a smile, "I'm pretty excited. I haven't seen them since Easter."

"That should be fun," Nick replied as Trigger made an appearance and lied down on his dog bed. "For a German Shepard, he's pretty friendly."

"He can sense people pretty well," I stated looking at the huge dog, "He won't bark or attack unless he knows it's for good reason."

"You trained him to do that?" Nick asked.

"More like inherited him," I said a bit sadly, "He was a gift from an old boss of mine before he passed away."

"Oh," Nick said a bit quietly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean too-"

"No way you're fine," I replied with a smile, "It's been about two years now. I'm at peace."

"I didn't think bosses and employees got along," Nick joked as I shrugged.

"I was sort of like his assistant," I began, which wasn't the truth but not a total lie, "So we were in each other's lives a lot, in and out of work."

"Ah," Nick said somewhat understanding the situation. "So who's going to take care of him when you're gone?"

I leaned back into my couch and rested my feet on the coffee table with my hands behind my head.

"Was thinking about putting him in a pet hotel not to far from here…" I replied as Nick nodded. "But since you're here…"

"I'm not taking care of a dog Lark," Nick stated as I looked at him.

"100 bucks a day. 5 days away equals $500 bucks. All you gotta do is feed him, give him water, take him for a walk, and if you can attempt to give him a bath I'll add in $50 bucks." I bargained with him as his mouth dropped in astonishment. "You promise me two things: you stay here with Trigger until I get back. I'll give you an extra key. You have access to anything in this house."

"What's the other thing?" Nick asked as I smiled and got up from the couch.

"Don't touch my Harley,"

 _ **Author's Note: I want to thank you guys who have viewed, followed, and favorited this story! You guys are so awesome and incredible! And a huge shoutout to anr017 for reviewing and being my go-to person whenever I need advice on my writing. And another shoutout to AquaRoseWaters! Thanks for reviewing, and to answer your question: I actually HAVE thought about making this an AU fic and including Walking Dead characters meeting up with the FTWD cast. Can you imagine how much hell Larkin, Daryl, AND Merle would cause? That would be so fun to write :) How they end up there is beyond my mental capacity, but its fanfiction anything can happen right? Lol. So keep reading and see what comes up!**_

 _ **Now compared to 'boxer' Larkin in Truth Beyond Lies, I have dug even deeper into her character. Her flashback in the beginning may shock or confuse some readers, but Larkin isn't this cookie-cutter OC you would think to see in a Walking Dead fanfic. She's a human being who has been through a bunch of shit, especially after her mother's death, that causes her to trickle into the underground world and society. Like Daryl and Merle, she has secrets and issues of her own. In case there is any confusion, 'Hernandez' was Larkin's name underground, and that was in honor of her mother's maiden name.**_

 _ **In all honesty, when this story was still in it's early stages, I had no idea one of the villains in Season Two was named Reed. Getting to that point will be interesting since both a good and bad guy are named Reed (just spelled differently lol). I thought that was funny.**_

 _ **Alrighty guys! Please don't hesitate to DM me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns! You can also do it in the reviews section as well. Thank you for all your support! You are one of the main reasons I keep on writing and updating this story! :) Happy reading and have a nice day!**_


	3. Chapter 3 (Part I)

_**Inferno**_

 _ **Rated: T**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own TWD, FTWD, or any other fandoms used in this story. I do however own my OC's.**_

 _ **Chapter Three: Change (Part I)**_

I had gotten up early and got ready for the day. I threw on a pair of black cargo shorts and a black shirt with my sneakers. I was cooking some soup when I heard Nick rustle on the couch. I frowned. He had thrown up a couple of times throughout the night and I kept the trash can close to him. He kept reassuring me he was fine after each episode, but I saw the spasms and groans of pain. The withdrawals were starting to kick in. I was going to go ahead and let Reid stay with him during the time I was gone. Maybe provide Reid with something to wean him off. I remember Merle went through hell when he was getting off, but my dad made him go cold turkey so it took him longer. I saw Nick's head rise up as he sat up on the couch looking around bleary-eyed.

"Morning sleepy head," I said as he lazily turned around and leaned his arm against the couch.

Trigger licked Nick's hand and Nick smiled and petted him. I grinned. Believe it or not Nick was more of a cat person than a dog person. I remember him telling me that one time when we were hanging out. Luckily Trigger was a sweetheart and took to Nick kindly. That dog can get vicious when he wants to be. I put some soup in a bowl and carefully walked it over to the coffee table with some crackers and a glass of water. I set it down and Nick looked at it suspiciously.

"I didn't poison it," I stated as he shook his head.

"It's not that…" Nick began, "I just…I don't remember when was the last time I was treated this way."

I frowned.

"Most days I usually have to hunt for food or not eat at all…and here I am. Someone actually had the kindness to make me food and bring it to me." Nick reminisced as he gingerly got a cracker and slowly ate it.

"You could get that treatment at home you know," I began as I took a seat beside him. "Your mom and Alicia really care about you."

"Yeah but they don't get me Lark." Nick continued, "My mom wants me to be this perfect little mama's boy she can have control over. Alicia was always the over achiever, my mom wanted me to be like her. Set the example. My mom never bothers her because she's great at everything. After a while…it takes a toll on you. One reason I left was because my mom never gave me space. Then Travis came. When I was introduced to drugs…it was a whole new world. It made me feel empowering. Like I had control over myself for once."

"I can't speak for your mom Nick, I know as a mother they just want the best for you." I told him remembering my mother, "But you're right, sometimes it does get overwhelming and you need a way out. But out of all things, drugs?"

"Sorry I'm not addicted to animals like you are," Nick joked as I chuckled.

"Can you at least promise me you'll try this time?" I asked as Nick nodded taking a huge gulp of water.

"Anything for you Lark," Nick stated with his infamous grin as he looked me in the eye.

I focused myself to watch something on TV and noticed Nick still staring. It was getting annoying now.

"Take a picture it'll last longer."

"I didn't know you had blue eyes," Nick said as I turned to face him again with a raised eyebrow.

"Nicholas Clark, it's been how many years?" I asked as he smiled again.

"Never realized how bright they were. Usually you see people with blue eyes that are normal. Yours are like ice."

I looked away when he said that. I remember people saying my eyes were as cold as ice back in the past.

"Something I said?" Nick asked as I shook my head.

"Haven't heard that statement in a while is all," I said as I felt my phone vibrate.

I looked at my phone and my mouth dropped open. Nick noticed my face and then looked on the TV. The news had popped up with a large red banner flashing across the screen and 'BREAKING' in white letters. My flight had been delayed until 3 pm. Trigger's normally happy go-lucky attitude subsided when he heard the emergency broadcast system siren on the TV. Nick's eyes widened and he immediately got up and started pacing.

"No, no, no…this isn't real." Nick kept muttering over and over again as he got lost in his thoughts.

"Nick…Nick listen to me. You're okay…" I gently said as I got up, "Look it's not in Los Angeles, it's from New York. Millions of miles away."

"Larkin don't bullshit me, it says it happened on the interstate!" He exclaimed as the leaked footage rolled on the television.

It looked like it was from somebody's cell phone with the bad quality, but a man was attacking one of the rescue workers from a car crash he was supposedly in. It looked like it was trying to eat the rescue worker. Another man was stumbling around trying to attack the others until he is shot several times, but does not go down. I watched in horror at this awful scene. Was it a new horror movie coming out maybe? That's gotta be the case. Nobody in their right mind would eat another human being. Was the virus causing…

I immediately thought of AJ and gasped.

"It's going to spread. People are going to end up like Gloria. Larkin, Larkin, I need to see Calvin."

"Who's Calvin?" I asked trying to clear my thoughts as I texted AJ.

"My dealer."

"WHAT?!" I exclaimed angrily, "Nick you promised!"

"NO! Not for that! I need to find out if he laced anything with those drugs!" Nick shot back as I shook my head.

"Nick listen to me. You're okay. I believe you. You don't need to see him. You're here with me. Safe and sound. Got it?" I gently told him as he began to calm down.

My phone vibrated. I looked at it. It wasn't AJ.

It was Reid.

()

"They cancelled the rest of today's classes." Reid said over speakerphone as I was making an emergency kit for Trigger while I persuaded Nick to take a shower and cool off.

"You're on your way now?" I asked.

"Yeah. Charlotte lent me the car when I got home last night. Lucky her, she and grandpa and grandma are on a cruise not dealing with this shit." Reid replied.

I never understood how Charlotte let Reid call her by her first name, since that was his mom. They had an interesting relationship nonetheless. Charlotte loved her son more than anything in the world, but gave him a lot of freedom for his own good. She was more of a friend than a parent so to say.

"You promise me you'll take care of Nick and Trigger while I'm away?"

"Jesus Christ Lark, you're still going to the airport?" Reid asked. "It's going to be hell in there!"

"I'm not missing a flight I paid for because of some virus!" I barked at the phone.

There was silence for a second and I heard nothing but the running water from the shower.

"Larkin…" Reid began but I wasn't going to hear it right now.

"Text me when you're here," I said a bit harshly as I ended the call and stood in my kitchen for a second.

Scared.

I was scared shitless right now and I felt so weak.

This was literally out of my hands. I could do nothing about this. I was imagining a fun filled weekend with my family. But that was going to be taken away from me. But I couldn't stay here in LA. I needed to get to Georgia. I needed to get home. I felt tears threatening to fall but I blinked them back. No. Not now. I didn't realize Nick finished showering until I heard footsteps. I looked up and saw him wearing a towel around his waist and drying off his hair with another towel. Trigger was at my legs and rubbing his head against them. Nick must've saw my distraught expression.

"You okay?" Nick asked as I sighed heavily.

"Yeah, just a little shaken up." I admitted, "My family-"

"You're safer here, you have a place here than being stuck in the sky," Nick said as he threw the towel he was using to dry his hair over his shoulders.

Suddenly as if God was listening to me I got another notification. The delay to my plane was a precaution. It would leave on schedule at 2:45pm. I had an hour to get there.

"I'm going to the airport now. I can't wait for Reid." I told Nick as I grabbed my backpack filled with clothes, toiletries, and supplies. "There's probably traffic up the kazoo. I'm taking the Harley. I can hit the side streets. Please take care of Trigger, Nick," I bent down and hugged my dog and he cuddled back. This would probably be the last time I see him. "He's my baby. There's clothes for you on the couch. And Reid. You guys take care of each other."

"Larkin," Nick said as he walked towards me as I got up from the ground. "Wait-"

I hugged Nick as hard as I could. He was taken back at first, but he hugged me back. For a brief moment, everything felt alright. I wasn't as anxious or worried when Nick had his arms around me.

"You've always been a good guy Nick," I said, "Be careful and don't change."

"Be safe out there Larkin," Nick told me, "You were the only one who believed in me."

I looked him in the eye.

"If for any reason you need to leave, open the safe and take what's in there with you. 1028 is the code." I sternly told him.

I gave him one last quick hug and dashed down the stairs and roared my Harley to life. I snapped on my helmet and sped as legally and fast as I could to the airport. Plenty of cars were on the streets already. I overheard on the news, people were being asked to go to their homes until the CDC came up with an official statement of what was going on. Things were getting worse. Reid had texted me he was there 10 minutes after I left, and I decided to let Nick handle the explaining. I texted AJ again to no avail. Karl and Luke were home and they were staying there. Finn was also at his home.

I just hoped I could make it in time.

()

I arrived at the airport and Reid was right. It was definitely a hellhole. Thank God I didn't take the truck. I parked my Harley in the lot and ran my ass into the airport with my stuff. I looked at the clock. 2:15pm. Once I arrived inside the busy airport I searched for the billboard that usually showed information about the flights. I found them, and was relieved to see the non-stop flight from LA to Atlanta was untouched. I made sure to settle myself by the door, until 2:30 pm when usually they start boarding the planes. Many people passed by me; some were coughing, some had bandages on their arms, others were perfectly normal. I couldn't get that image from this morning out of my head and tried to refocus. I put on some music and plugged my earphones in my ears. That didn't help. Suddenly something was spoken overhead on the speakers. Some people started shouting angrily and the look of fear came over their faces.

 _ **"The Center for Disease Control in Los Angeles has issued a viral outbreak warning. State and local officials are encouraging officials to stay indoors. We have reported cases of high fever, nausea, death, and even cannibalism. All flights have been grounded and cancelled until further notice."**_

"No," I said not believing the announcement.

My heart dropped.

I couldn't breathe.

The billboard changed and showed every single flight 'CANCELLED'. I watched as they changed Los Angeles to Atlanta. I dropped down my knees. This couldn't be happening. No. No. This was all a bad dream. I saw people crowd around me. Someone asked me if I was alright. Suddenly I heard screaming and a commotion happening on the other end of the airport. No. I wasn't going to be a victim. I started having flashbacks from my past. Guns. Blood. Screams. The smiles, laughter, betting, people getting hurt. No. No. That wasn't now Larkin. Was it? Police were rushing towards the end of the airport. Police. Were they after me? WERE THEY AFTER ME? I saw several officials locking up the airport doors. No. No. No. I wouldn't be locked up.

NO.

"NO!" I screamed as I ran towards the door and pushed the door open despite the two men trying to lock the doors.

They were screaming at me to get back inside. I ran. I ran and got on my Harley. Where was I going to go now? The highways were jammed pack. I revved my motorcycle to life and headed back home.

()

I busted open my apartment doors and saw nobody there. No Nick. No Reid. No Trigger. I tried calming down but instead I screamed in anguish. Fuck. I was having an episode. I looked inside my cabinet. No. No. I got off meds a long time ago. I started scratching at my skin until they were raw. What was I going to do now? I quickly grabbed out my map of the country. I looked where Los Angeles was then traced it to Atlanta. 2,174 miles. That's almost two days trip. My Harley and my truck combined didn't have fucking 2,000 mpg without a gas stop in between. And God knows what was happening in other cities or alongside the road. I ran my hands through my hair and paced throughout my apartment. My phone started vibrating. I forgot it was in my pocket. I had several missed calls and texts from everyone. I dialed back my dad's number. He didn't answer. I had to keep myself from hyperventilating when I tried Merle's number. I heard it ring a couple of times and was about to hang up until I heard someone answer it.

"Hello?" came groggy, tired voice.

Never in a million years would I be so happy to hear his voice.

"MERLE!" I shouted.

"LARKIN!" He instantly exclaimed back. "Larkin, honey, what the hell is going on?! Your daddy came back home upset saying the flights were cancelled."

"Merle, have you been hearing about what's going on?! You and daddy?! I know y'all live in the goddamn boondocks but-"

"About that virus?"

"Merle it's real and it's happening!" I freaked out over the phone and let out a sob.

"Hey, hey baby girl calm down. Where's Reid?" Merle asked in a gentle tone trying to calm me down.

"He's…I don't know he's over at a friend's house. His family went on a cruise to promote their business. Merle, where's daddy? Please? I need to talk to daddy…" I said as I began breaking down and crying over the phone.

"Your daddy is over at the neighbors talking about this. We are taking precautions down here too baby girl." Merle cooed into the phone, "Hey don't cry. Look, get out of the city. You got the truck and you got the Harley. Get gas and get your ass out of there and head towards the desert. Or a boat, hell you might have better luck in the ocean than on land."

"Merle, I don't want to use a gun again!" I shouted as silence followed after that statement. "I don't to hurt people!"

"Larkin Blair Dixon you listen to your Uncle Merle." Merle said seriously into the phone, "We've all done things we ain't proud of. But this is different. You find any weapon you can find and don't be afraid to use it. Something bad is about to happen. Pack light and smart. Just like when we took you camping. Only this time-"

"It's gonna be for a long time…" I finished off remembering Lucco telling me the same phrase at one point in my career.

"Keep your phone on you. I'm getting your daddy right now and will call back." Merle stated, "I love you Larkin. Be careful."

"I love you too." I said as the phone hung up.

I cried.

I cried hard.

The last time I cried this hard was when I lost my mother.

I wasn't ready to lose my father and my uncle.

()

 _ **Get your ass to Nick's house now Larkin! Hurry! - Reid**_

I quickly stashed the things that were on top of my safe in my stuffed backpack. I opened the safe and saw nothing remained in there. Thank God Nick took all my things from in there. I made sure I had my belongings and took a good look into my apartment. It was going to be hard to say goodbye to this place I worked so hard on. This was the first space I got by myself when I changed my life. I closed up my apartment and locked up my space. I was able to haul my motorcycle up onto my truck flatbed by myself after a couple of failed attempts. I began my journey to Nick's house. I had the radio on which was helpful since I avoided the main roads and took the side streets. I stopped at a traffic stop, and saw someone hunched over on the ground. Several people surrounded the person. My curiosity got the best of me. I pulled my car to the side after I turned.

"Stay away!" cried out a familiar voice from the crowd.

My eyes widened as I saw AJ backing up the people and the person hunched over was none other than his wife Wendy. I looked at the street name. This was his neighborhood. What were the chances right? I dashed over to his side and noticed he was completely fine now. He wasn't sick anymore. That was a huge sigh of relief for me as I thought the virus would make him into a monster. Or maybe he did just have a bad case of the flu. But his wife was a different story. There was a bandage on her arm and she looked like she was in crucial amounts of pain. AJ spotted me and frowned. I helped him push the people back until his wife laid limp on the ground. AJ and I looked at her. Suddenly she sat back up. AJ was about to go after her until I pulled him back. His eyes widened as she started crawling on the ground and chomping. The crowd suddenly dispersed as she got onto her feet. Her eyes were a sickly grey and her eyes had yellow surrounding them. She was coming towards us. I had to push AJ away as she made a quick dash to the man. I grabbed out my pocket knife and started breathing heavily. No. Now wasn't the time. This is now. Wendy was making her way to me and almost got me. I held her back and stabbed her in the chest, but to no avail. I took the monster Wendy down and stabbed her right in the head. Immediately, she stopped and her eyes closed. I was breathing heavily as I was before. A quick flashback came up but I was able to shake it off. AJ came over and helped me up.

"What are the fucking chances…" AJ replied as he stated looking at the ground. "That's not my wife Larkin. Where's my wife?"

I frowned as I looked at my clothing. It was stained with blood but hardly noticeable because I was wearing black.

"Where are Karl and Luke?" I asked changing the subject as AJ shrugged.

"Texted me they were heading out into the desert. I haven't heard from Finn…"

"Come on, let's get your stuff and we will go get Finn," I replied as AJ looked back at the ground once more.

"My kids are in Reno, my wife is dead, what the hell do I do now Larkin?" AJ asked me unsurely as I sighed heavily.

"Only thing we can do right now: survive," I stated, "Come on, let's get going, we need to get to where I'm going before dark."

()

AJ grabbed several of his items in mere minutes as we headed towards our next destination. Finn's house. I asked AJ how he got better and he assumed the flu he caught was just the regular old flu. He didn't notice the bite on his wife's arm until this morning, he brought it up while they were deciding whether or not to go to Reno (their kids were visiting relatives), they argued, and she ended up coming out of the house and he followed. That's when she turned and I showed up. So we figured out if you were bitten or scratched by these monsters, apparently you become one. And they only died if you killed their brain. That was interesting because even though they were dead, they were technically still alive. I stopped my car in front of Finn's apartment. AJ told me to stay put and rushed towards the stairs. I saw it was getting close to sunset, and whipped out my phone.

 _ **We've got company - Me**_

 _ **What do you mean? - Reid**_

 _ **I've got AJ with me. Finn's next. - Me**_

 _ **WHAT?! Larkin! Madison offered for YOU to stay here! Not your coworkers! - Reid**_

 _ **They're family Reid! What am I supposed to do just leave them outta nowhere? - Me**_

 _ **FINE. I'll talk to her. YOU OWE ME BIG TIME. - Reid**_

I didn't mean to take advantage of Madison's generosity, but what could I do? These guys were as close to family as I had here. I couldn't leave them in the dirt. Luckily a couple of minutes later, Finn came out of his apartments with his belongings. He threw his bigger stuff in the back and he sat in the middle of me and AJ. Thank God we squeezed in there. I hauled ass to Nick's house, and told Finn about what had happened to Wendy. His face was hardened, which was unlike him because he was so happy and carefree most of the time. He said he witnessed a monster like that too in the park the night before; it was about to eat a stray cat but Finn led it away. He didn't know it was a monster until he saw the stranger's eyes were very sickly looking and was about to attack him until Finn whacked him on the head with a huge rock he found and ran off.

"Where exactly are we going?" Finn asked as I took a sharp turn into Nick's neighborhood.

"Friend of mine's mother opened up her home to us," I lied partially, "We will camp out there until we figure out what's next."

"Your family's okay? Is it happening there too?" AJ asked as I nodded.

"They're fine and yes they are." I stated a bit harshly and AJ got the message not to ask any more about it.

We pulled up to Nick's house and I hesitated at first. Is this where I wanted to be? AJ and Finn looked at me with concern. I felt Finn's hand on my shoulder as I clutched the steering wheel. I could only imagine how AJ was feeling right now with losing his wife and not knowing about his children.

"This is just until we figure out what's next," I told the two, "If things get worse, we go to the desert. I promise."

"Things are only going to get worse," Finn stated as he squeezed my shoulder, "But we can get through it."

I sighed heavily as I looked at the house.

Only God would know what happens now.

 _ **Author's Note: I've decided to split this chapter into two parts just because it would've been hella long if I included it all in one, AND we may or may not get a different perspective from another character's point of view in the next part :) Now with four more people being thrown into Madison's house, one is her son's best friend, one she hardly knows and two strangers, what will happen next? Someone brought up the theme of FTWD is family, so how will Larkin, Reid, AJ, and Finn deal with not having their family with them during these events? Will that cause them to become their own family, find their own, or accept those around them as theirs? This has been such a pleasure writing, and I'm glad people are enjoying it! Thank you for the views and reviews guys. As always I'm open to suggestions, comments, and concerns. Till next time!**_


	4. Chapter 3 (Part II)

_**Inferno**_

 _ **Rated: T**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own TWD, FTWD, or any other fandoms that might pop up in here. All I own are my characters.**_

 _ **Chapter Three: Change (Part II)**_

"Reid, there isn't much room here for two more people…" Madison sighed heavily as Reid hesitated at first asking her about two more people joining them. "Travis is getting Chris and his mom. We have a random dog. And these are people I don't know. Larkin is the exception because Nick knows her."

"I know it's not my place to make the decision, but they're good friends of mine too." Reid lied, "They knew my parents. If anything they don't even need to be in the house, they can take the garage."

"Just for tonight until this blows over alright? That's all I can promise until Travis comes home." Madison sternly told him as Reid nodded.

"Thank you Mrs. Clark, I appreciate it." Reid replied as Madison raised an eyebrow.

"Cut the formality Reid, I've seen you in diapers," Madison joked as Reid nodded and quickly scurried into the living room.

Madison had just gotten home from getting Nick's meds from the stash at the school she worked at. She seemed different coming into the house and distracted; but Reid assumed it was from Travis not being there. Reid was trying to cover up his own difference that him and Nick had encountered earlier that day. Nick begged him to take him to see Calvin, and Reid agreed. They met the dealer at a diner, and Calvin insisted Nick to go with him somewhere. Reid wasn't stupid, and he followed behind with Trigger in the backseat growling up a storm. Calvin was about to kill Nick, until Reid saw the struggle and Nick shot him right in the chest.

It was in self-defense, Reid knew that for sure before calling the cops. While it was ringing, Trigger began barking and growling like crazy. Reid hung up as the operator asked what was his emergency. He drove up to Nick and told him to get in. It wasn't until a couple of minutes later, they heard Calvin shuffling around on the floor. Nick's eyes widened and he immediately dashed into the car. They saw Calvin standing up and walking slowly. Nick said that wasn't Calvin, but Reid couldn't believe it. Reid drove over the dead Calvin, but as they sped away, the man kept walking.

Reid and Nick headed to their house meeting up with Madison and Travis. Alicia stomped up to her room after she walked in through the front door, while Madison explained to Reid what happened. Apparently Alicia's boyfriend got bitten by one of the infected, and she was devastated. That's when Nick started going through his withdrawals hardcore. He began getting feverish and Madison had him lie on the couch, while she called his doctor. When she couldn't get a hold of him, she made the decision to get the meds while Travis went to go pick up his family. Madison had put Reid and Alicia in charge. Alicia was about to make a run for it back to her boyfriend's until Nick begged her to stay and in the process threw up all over the floor. Alicia and him had a moment, and Reid offered to pick it up as Alicia got her brother back on the couch.

"Reid," Nick called out as Reid's head piqued up.

"Yeah? You okay?"

"Yeah…I've been thinking." Nick began as he shuffled himself to face his friend, "Why was there weapons in Larkin's safe?"

"Uh…" Reid started not knowing what to say. "The crossbow and arrows were a gift from her dad. They used to go hunting."

"The engraved guns, ammo, and knife?" Nick questioned as Reid rubbed the back of his neck.

"Not sure. I think they were a gift as well…" Reid replied hoping Nick would buy it.

"Who's Matthew Lucco?" Nick kept asking as Reid sighed.

"An old boss of hers. They were close."

"She work in a gun range or something?"

Before Reid could answer that question, Trigger was barking loudly at the window. Reid looked out the window and his heart soared. At that moment the lights started flickering and eventually died off. Electricity must've been going off now. He saw Larkin get out alongside AJ and Finn. Thankfully he would be able to try to meet AJ and Finn and get some story started. He answered the door and practically tackled down the brunette after seeing her alive. Larkin was surprised and hugged him back awkwardly. Reid closed the door as Trigger came back to his owner happily and rubbed against her legs. Nick sat up in the couch as he saw the two men with Larkin. He raised an eyebrow. Who were they? And why was the short haired one so close to her? Nick mentally slapped himself for the small jealously that arose in him for some reason. He saw Reid talk to the three for a while and they shook hands afterwards. Suddenly he heard footsteps come down the stairs and knew it was his mother.

"Larkin, nice to see you again," Madison greeted and turned to focus on the older men that walked in. "I hear your friend's with Reid's family,"

"Yes ma'am, my name is Allen Jones," the older man with shaggy dark hair introduced himself with his hand sticking out, "Friends call me AJ. This is my son, Finn Jones,"

Nick squinted to make sure he was hearing right. Did this guy call the short one his father? They looked nothing alike. And Finn looked like he was AJ's age. Madison shook their hands and made small talk with them. Nick noticed something different about Larkin. She looked…older in a weird sense. Suddenly her phone went off and Larkin went to the next room to answer it. Nick saw his mom still talking to the three and shuffled himself in there. He peeked in and heard Larkin talking on the phone.

"DAD!" She answered, "Oh my God, are you okay? Where's Merle? Have you heard-"

Larkin stayed quiet for a second. Nick could tell from her facial expression something was wrong.

"What?" she asked in disbelief. "Dad no…"

More silence surrounded him until Larkin's eyes looked watery.

"No dad! It's too fucking risky! You can't make it over here in two days!" she exclaimed in a defeated tone. "Look, I'm fine. I'm with friends-"

Silence again.

"What are you talking about? I wouldn't surround myself with people I don't know dad." She half-lied about the statement, "Isn't strength in numbers?"

Nick felt bad eavesdropping, but it was better than lying on a couch.

Suddenly Nick heard sniffling. Larkin looked like she was about to cry, and his heart ached. He had lost his father at a young age, he knew how it felt like. Larkin lost her mom, but now her family? All because of this stupid shit going on? It angered him in a sense. Larkin didn't deserve this. Nobody did.

"DAD!" Larkin shouted worriedly grabbing everyone's attention. "Dad?! Can you hear me?! Dad, I love you! I love you so much!"

Larkin got up and began pacing. She looked at her phone and was completely oblivious to everyone surrounding her. She began muttering and pushing the numbers in. Nick noticed she was scratching against her jacket sleeves when nobody answered. He raised an eyebrow. He had never seen Larkin get this freaked out before. Reid looked over behind Nick and kept on eye on his friend. Larkin started breathing heavily, almost like she was hyperventilating and literally dashed for the door. Trigger followed after her and barked a couple of times before placing himself against the door. Luckily Finn locked it before Larkin reached it. Reid grabbed her just in time as she tried getting out of his grasp. This was such a heartbreaking sight to see. Nick left the area as Larkin wept heavily on Reid, while he calmed her down.

()

"The kid is crying because nobody came to her birthday party?" Finn asked as he looked outside the blinds, "Poor thing doesn't know what's coming to her."

"You should go wish her a happy birthday." AJ shot back as Finn looked at him with a disgusted expression.

"Psh yeah right and come back infected? We don't know if that shit's airborne," Finn replied taking a seat on the recliner.

Reid had taken Larkin up to Nick's room to calm down. Madison was busy preparing some kind of drink for her new guests with the little electricity that was left. AJ smelled the coffee brewing as he sighed.

"How long have you two known Larkin?" Nick piped up, retreating back on the couch.

"About two or three years?" AJ answered and chuckled, "Trigger was just a puppy then."

"I bet he was adorable," Alicia said trying to keep her mind off of today's events.

"A total pain the ass is more like it."

"Can it Finn, you were pissed just because he peed on your shoes," AJ laughed.

"They were designer Gucci dress shoes, you would be too." Finn shot back as everyone chuckled.

"How old are you guys?" Alicia asked curious.

"45," AJ lied as Finn quickly calculated a believable number.

"25," Finn replied, being mistaken for this age for a while now.

"Must've been hard having a kid that young," Nick stated with a raised eyebrow as AJ shrugged.

"Those were the old days kid, people got married and had kids young. Let me tell ya, he was definitely a surprise." AJ joked as Finn busted out chuckling at AJ's ridiculousness.

Madison brought out the coffee and settled herself on the couch. She began talking to AJ as Finn looked around awkwardly. Alicia decided to go upstairs and check on her phone and see if it was still charging. She excused herself and walked up the stairs. As she made it to her room, she saw Reid come out of Nick's room. He sighed heavily and looked at Alicia as she leaned against the door frame.

"She okay?" Alicia asked as Reid nodded.

"Yeah, just a lot to handle you know?" Reid replied as Alicia pursed her lips.

"What happened to your family?" Alicia asked as Reid looked at her with sad, blue eyes.

"My mom called me saying the ship wasn't coming back. Her, grandpa, and grandma were on there." Reid explained as Alicia's face fell.

"What? Why wouldn't they go back on land?" Alicia asked as Reid shrugged.

"They jumped ship Alicia. People were getting infected." Reid stated, "They were on a life boat to God knows where,"

Silence came between them. Alicia broke the tension and stretched out her arms. Reid reluctantly hugged her back not knowing how to turn down the act of kindness. Reid had pushed that phone call out of his mind until now. He hadn't even talked to Larkin about it. But Larkin had bigger issues to deal with and Reid wouldn't slam another rough story on her just yet. She was unstable. Luckily he was able to rock her to sleep and Trigger stayed in there with her.

"Alicia!" came Madison's voice as Alicia walked down the stairs with her phone in hand.

Reid stood there for a second. He knew Alicia was devastated for Matt, but in the back of his mind somewhat relieved. He snapped the thought out of his head and walked down the stairs, hoping Larkin would be better when she woke up.

()

Madison offered the three men a chance to play Monopoly with them as soon as the electricity turned off completely. They declined and moved themselves to the kitchen table. Reid acted as the middleman between the family and strangers. He made small talk with AJ, and noticed Finn wasn't much of a talker despite what he's heard about him. Reid had found out AJ had lost his wife and children. Finn was an orphan before all of this, his parents died in a car accident right after he graduated high school. Reid revealed about the outcome of his family, and AJ sympathized with them. Finn excused himself from the two and went to check on Larkin. He walked into the boy's room and saw Larkin awake, but lying in bed. He closed the door and sat beside Trigger on the edge of the bed.

"You okay?" Finn asked as Larkin nodded.

Finn noticed Larkin was clutching her jacket tightly over herself. Finn figured it was a gift from her father since it was slightly baggy and had two angel wings engraved in the back. Finn remembered Larkin joked angel wings was her family emblem.

"I will be," Larkin replied, "I took it way to hard Finn."

"No you didn't." Finn answered, "Just keep your memories intact Lark. Memories will help you keep him alive."

Suddenly Trigger started barking furiously and Larkin got up. The two went towards the window and saw an animal racing across the street with a monster trailing behind it quickly. A couple of minutes later, they heard whimpering enter the house. Larkin was about to go investigate until Finn dodged for the door and kept it closed. They overheard the people talking downstairs and AJ shouted for the two to stay up there and under no circumstances come down the stairs until they came back. Came back from where was the question? Larkin quickly attached a leash on Trigger and grabbed her crossbow from the bag Nick had as Finn grabbed a small handgun from his belt and braced himself on the door after locking it. Trigger began growling intensely, but as soon as Larkin told him to shush he toned it down. The two kept quiet as they heard the animal in the house. It felt like forever they were waiting with their weapons. Finn noticed how tense Larkin looked.

They heard barking and a ghastly rumble through the house. Larkin kept herself from barging out when she heard the monster attack the poor animal downstairs. Then voices came into the house. Unfamiliar voices. When she heard Reid's voice and a gunshot ring throughout the household, she pushed Finn off of the door and dashed down the stairs. Screams became louder as she raised her crossbow, ready for whatever the hell was going down there. Larkin made it to the living room and saw an unfamiliar, older Hispanic man standing there with a shotgun. The monster's blood was spewed everywhere and the rest of his body was laying limp by the dead animal, which ended up being a dog. It's belly was torn open, and it took every inch of Larkin not to gag. The man's eyes narrowed as he saw her raised weapon. He didn't seem threatened by her, even though she had a crossbow raised to his face.

"DON'T SHOOT!" Larkin heard Madison call out as the stare down between Larkin and the Hispanic man faulted as she turned her attention to the blonde.

Larkin spotted Reid and AJ with the Clarks as they stepped over the horror scene. Larkin looked behind her as Finn joined her. Another family was standing there; Larkin recognized Travis, a female, and maybe her son? They all had tight expressions on their faces. Larkin took a shaky, deep breath and slung her crossbow over her shoulder. Reid and AJ joined Larkin and Reid as the newcomers and Travis looked over at the new group. Travis ignored them for a second as he explained to Madison who the older Hispanic man was. Madison introduced Finn and AJ hastily. Travis kept eyeing Larkin's crossbow as if she was going to pull it out on him.

"At least we got one person in this place who's prepared," Nick stated nonchalantly as he walked over to Larkin and put his arm around her shoulders.

Reid quickly noticed the tension between Larkin and this stranger. Something in him told him to try and settle this tension with this guy. He looked like he knew what he was doing when he shot that monster straight on. That meant he was of value right? Reid walked up to the man with the shotgun, and the man looked at him questionably. Reid stuck out his hand, unsure what the hell he was doing and where this would go. The man raised an eyebrow.

"My apologies for my sister sir, she's just trying to protect," Reid apologized.

"She's your sister?" the man questioned, seeing they looked nothing alike.

"By bond," Reid stated, "Reid Sumners."

There was silence until the man shook Reid's hand.

"Better to be prepared than to be dead," the man replied, "Daniel Salazar."

()

A couple of minutes later, Travis declared himself the head of the household. Not really, but he came up with a plan for the new visitors. Daniel and his family (who were in the truck at the time) were to take Alicia's room. Nick and Alicia would take Nick's room. The Hispanic woman, who everyone found out was Travis' ex-wife, Liza, and their son Chris were in the guest room, Travis and Madison in their own room, and Larkin, Reid, AJ, and Finn were to stay in the living room. Larkin had remembered Nick had her belongings in his room, and excused herself to go get them. Travis sighed as he ran a hand down his face looking at the bloodied mess. He figured this was going to be a long night. As Travis got the towels, bleach, and disinfect sprays he heard a couple of footsteps. He saw the new guy, Finn, there.

"You need any help?" Finn offered as Travis shrugged.

"Sure, I guess." Travis responded in a very unfriendly tone.

Finn opened up the sliding door and literally kicked the dead man and dog out into the backyard. He placed some towels on the floor to soak up the blood residue after he was done. Travis raised an eyebrow as Finn left a crack open.

"The shovel's in the shed!" Travis hollered loud enough for Finn to hear him.

He heard Finn rummage around the small shed and then the shovel scraping up dirt not to long afterwards.

()

When Larkin appeared in Nick's room, Nick was lying in bed with his hands behind his head. Alicia had gone to her room real quick to grab some clothes and her belongings. Larkin greeted Nick and went to get her bag and leave until Nick started talking to her.

"Your dad called you earlier?" Nick asked as Larkin frowned and uncomfortably shifted from one foot to another.

"Didn't know you overheard the first part," Larkin replied knowing Nick didn't mean anything bad by it, but it was still a hard topic to talk about. "He called me saying he wanted to pick me up…told him it was too risky."

"I'm sorry," Nick honestly said as Larkin shrugged and retrieved her bag, walking back down the stairs.

()

Larkin woke up to a couple of quiet sobs. She turned over on the couch and saw AJ bent over with his face buried in his hands. Larkin frowned as she sat up. Finn had finished burying the monster and dog about two hours ago, and passed out on the floor beside Reid. AJ had taken the recliner, but Larkin swore he fell asleep before everyone else. Larkin got up and sat on the recliner's arm getting AJ's attention. AJ looked up at the girl with blood shot eyes. Larkin rubbed his back as he took a shaky deep breath.

"She's gone Lark." AJ said sadly. "Wendy's gone. My children are gone. What the hell am I supposed to do now?"

"Survive Allen," Larkin stated. "Maybe this will pass over soon. Your kids were with your brother and his wife for the summer yeah?"

"Yeah,"

"Dustin, right?" Larkin asked as AJ nodded. "You told me he was an ex-Marine."

"Doesn't matter if he knows survival Lark, my kids should be with me!" AJ exclaimed angrily.

"Calm down Allen," Larkin replied, "Everything will be okay…."

Larkin talked to AJ some more until he shooed her away. Larkin walked out of the living room and into the small kitchen. She retrieved her phone from her pocket and looked at the screen. She tried calling her father again to no luck. She tried texting him. The message came back saying there was an error sending it. Larkin settled her nerves and came to terms. She probably wouldn't be able to see her father and uncle again. But she was okay with it now. She knew what they were capable of. And she knew what she was capable of. They would make it out alright and alive.

Larkin heard rustling and looked towards her side. She saw Chris coming out of the guest room with a blanket. And a small pang of jealously. Chris had both his parents with him during this apocalypse. Larkin shook off the uneasiness and nodded to Chris as he nodded back.

"Saw you in here and figured you might be cold?" Chris offered his blanket out of nowhere.

"Uh…thanks…" Larkin said as she grabbed the cover Chris gave her. "Sure you don't need it?"

"There's too many covers on the bed for me." Chris said as he tucked his hands into his pockets, "We never officially met, I'm Chris."

"Larkin," Larkin introduced back.

"I like your jacket," Chris pointed to the one she was wearing.

Larkin smiled gently, "Yeah…I do it. Belonged to my dad when he was younger."

Their brief conversation ended as Chris retreated back to his room after saying goodnight. That was definitely random but nonetheless kind. And she appreciated it. Shortly after Larkin walked back to the living room and saw AJ had fallen back asleep. Larkin sat back on the couch and pulled the extra cover over her thinking. Maybe she could trust these new people. Or at least eventually. As she wrestled with her thoughts, she slowly drifted off to sleep.

 _ **A/N: Hey guys! Shoot I didn't realize how long I haven't updated until I logged back in. It's been a while so sorry! But fear not! I will not give up on this story because 1) worked way to hard on it and 2) there's so much I've thought about happening in the series that it would bug me if I didn't write it for y'all to read!**_

 _ **We see some things developing, and I'm going to let you figure out where it leads. Maybe some alliances and enemies are forming within the household already? Like always, comments, questions, concerns are always welcomed as well as reviews! Until next chapter!**_


	5. Chapter 4

_**Inferno**_

 _ **Rated: T**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own FTWD, TWD, or any fandoms that may pop up. I just own my characters.**_

 _ **A/N: Chapter will be in Reid's POV. And if anyone is interested I've given some of my characters face claims, so you have an idea of how they look like as the story progresses. I've started a board on Pinterest for that exact reason lol. Just head to my page ( mizzmox76) and it should pop up! As always reviews, comments, concerns, and DM's are always welcomed! Enjoy!**_

 _ **Chapter Four: New Start**_

I woke up with a jerk and squinted as I saw the sunlight peek through the window. I tried to figure out what time it was, but to no avail. The power came back on shortly after the whole commotion with the monster, and nobody must've reset the time. I knew it was early though, and sat up from the bed I made out of sheets. Finn was still passed out, all sprawled out on the floor. AJ was on the recliner. And Larkin was still asleep with a new cover on top of her sheet. I had to crack a small grin. The only time Larkin ever looked peaceful was when she was asleep. I got up quietly and stretched as I made my way quickly to the bathroom before anyone else woke up. I grabbed my backpack, and locked myself in there.

I noticed Larkin threw a bag of clothes away after arriving yesterday. I wonder what that was about. She didn't exactly tell me what happened on her way here, she just told me she got AJ and Finn. AJ and Finn were nice guys, I met them a couple of times when I would visit her job and get my car fixed there, just not enough to the point to consider them 'friends'. Thankfully Madison was going along with them being my mother's friends. And thank God Finn didn't look his age either to make it more believable. Suddenly I heard a knock on the door after I finished my shower. I quickly wrapped a towel around my hips and asked who it was.

It was Larkin.

And she asked to be let in.

I opened the door and quickly Larkin came in. It wasn't awkward sharing a bathroom with Larkin, we've seen each other naked a couple of times before but never acted on it. I saw her as a sister, and likewise she saw me as a brother. We weren't attracted to each other, despite people telling us we would eventually. We would laugh it off and ignore it. Larkin jumped into the shower as I got ready. I tried making small conversation with her, but she wasn't in a talkative mood. I frowned.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

No response.

It was either a flashback or a bad dream. I exited out the bathroom and came face to face with Nick. Nick raised an eyebrow as he saw Larkin's things in the bathroom before I closed the door.

"You and Lark…?" He began as I cut him off.

"Just friends Nick. She's all yours," I joked as I went down the stairs leaving him there.

()

When I came down the stairs I saw AJ talking to Madison and Travis. I'm assuming he decided to take place as our group leader since he was always talking to the Clarks about things. Then again he used to run a business by himself, so it didn't bother me much. He probably had more leadership skills than anybody, Finn greeted me having gotten ready in the downstairs bathroom after everyone else's use. I greeted back and walked over to ask what was going on. The three adults greeted me as I joined their circle.

"We have decided to head to the desert." Madison declared.

"Safer and less people out there," Travis replied.

Ah.

That's why Larkin was pissed.

She was wrestling with herself about the desert trip.

Knowing Larkin she would either take this chance to drive off to God knows where or stay with us. Larkin was the type of person who took chances; no matter how ridiculous or risky they seemed. And she didn't like being told what to do. So this would be interesting to see what she would end up doing. As they continued to explain their plan, I saw Daniel teaching Travis's son about the shotgun they had used the previous night. I saw Travis hesitate, but I didn't see anything wrong with it. It was a good idea. Everybody needs to be taught something about survival at this point. I knew how to shoot a gun thanks to my grandpa. He served in the Marines for a while, and my grandma used to be a nurse for the military. I had some medical and gun knowledge but that was about it. Nothing to Larkin's extent though.

Everybody was ready in less than 10 minutes tops. The Salazars had gotten a hold of a relative that was going to pick them up. They kept to themselves a lot, I didn't see them get out of the room at all. I only know Daniel's daughters name is Ofelia, and that was because I overheard them talking in Alicia's room. His wife was really sick, something happened to her foot. I winced thinking about it, and was grateful mine was still intact. Larkin, AJ, and Finn threw their belongings in the back of the truck and climbed in. I decided to ride with Madison and the Clarks, while Travis and his family took their truck.

"So AJ used to date your mom." Madison piped up driving along, "Any chance he's your daddy?"

"Ha, don't make me laugh," I responded.

Madison knew my mom was a promiscuous woman and often joked about it. They were good friends before this happened. And finding out who my father was, was a running joke of some sort. Of course I had a name and pictures, but never actually met the man. He left my mother shortly after I was born, and my grandparents helped her raise me. Out of nowhere Madison quickly stopped the car and made a sharp U-turn. Alicia exclaimed what was wrong but it looked like Madison was in no mood to answer. She parked the car right in front of her house and dashed out the vehicle. Luckily she put it in park or else we'd be rolling down the hill. Nick and Alicia got out of the car and I followed suit. Behind me I saw Travis' and Larkin's trucks come back and sighed in relief. Thank God.

Madison ran to her neighbor's backyard to warn him about his wife. His wife, Susan, was one of the monsters. We figured it out when she almost got a hold of Alicia, but Chris helped her down before getting his nose broken. Then after examining her, we found out she had died but reanimated. Madison was shouting after the man when we arrived in the back. Poor guy. He didn't have any idea what was going on. He ignored Madison's cries and looked more concerned about what had happened to his wife. I was about to pull out my pocket knife and save the guy until I heard a gunshot. Everyone stopped. A bullet pierced through the air and shot the monster right as she was about to bite Patrick.

Just like a movie, Army men swarmed the area pushing us back from the scene. I grabbed Larkin as Trigger followed closely behind. The image of the man named Patrick in shock holding his dead wife in his arms embedded into my mind.

()

"Lark, listen to me, everything will be okay," I told Larkin as she was pacing in the closed garage.

The military had swooped into our neighborhood and taken control basically. They made us go back into the Clark household and Larkin dashed for the nearest place alone. Finn and AJ were about to follow her, but I persuaded them to let me go in and talk to her first. They didn't know much about this side of Larkin they were going to see. Larkin was sane for the most part, but she did have her 'freak out' moments. And usually I was the only one that could talk sense to her, even when she didn't want to admit it.

"No it isn't! The fucking military now Reid?! What the fuck is this?!" Larkin snapped at me and I sighed.

Yep.

This was gonna take a while with her conspiracy ass.

"Larkin, they're here to help."

"No Reid, we're caged in like a bunch of animals! I should've fucking left when I had the chance! Fucking left and never looked back! I shouldn't have come back for you, or picked up AJ or Finn, I should've headed back to Georgia!"

"Larkin, you don't mean that," I said not taking what she said to heart.

"This isn't good no matter how you look at it! Now we have to listen to their rules! I know what's going to happen next! They're going to think they're big shit and run this place and do you think they'll be nice about it Reid? NO! They're going to use force and use us-"

"Larkin, calm the hell down!" I barked at the girl as she looked at me with angry eyes, "Take a breather! I don't know what's going to happen okay? But you need to get it together and calm the fuck down. They will take anyone they suspect is going AWOL."

"So I can't tell the truth now or what I think? What happened to freedom of speech or was that a bunch of bullshit I was fed about as a kid?"

Why was this girl so goddamn stubborn?

"You talk shit to those guys out there girl? Chances are they'll contain you and never let you come back. They'll make up shit just to keep you contained whether it's true or not. So for my sake and yours, DON'T let that anger control you. YOU AREN'T that Larkin anymore."

I knew those words hit Larkin hard and she walked out of the garage to cool off. I heard her go up the stairs, so most likely she was going to retreat to the bathroom or Nick's room since it was unoccupied at the moment. I walked back out to see AJ and Finn, and they asked me what happened. I told them she needed to cool off and walked to the backyard. I saw where Finn buried the man and dog's bodies. I stayed there, thinking. What really was going to happen now? You've always heard about lockdowns, but never knew what the term meant until you were actually in one. I wonder if we could get away with labor if I mentioned my military background. I heard someone open the sliding door, and turned around. It was Alicia. She must've sensed something was off as she was about to go back inside.

"You're good Lish," I called out grabbing her attention.

I heard the door close and saw her stand beside me looking at the fence.

"You okay? I heard you and Larkin arguing," Alicia asked as I took a deep breath.

"Yeah, I'm okay." I replied, "I needed some breathing room."

"She told Nick the same thing. They're upstairs together," Alicia said as I almost busted out laughing.

Nick with a pissed off Larkin in the room. That was definitely a sight to see. Without drugs or drinks, Nick wasn't exactly a ladies man on his own. He didn't score Gloria by just his normal self. When Nick took the drugs, he was a whole other person. He knew what to say and do. But without them? He was plain awkward around women. And he hated to admit it. So him trying to console one? That probably won't end well.

"This isn't exactly the situation she wanted to be in." I stated, "I don't think any of us wanted to be in it."

"It's scary…" Alicia began, "But I've been thinking what's scarier? Being in a neighborhood with a bunch of military guys who know what they're doing or dealing with dead people walking?"

"Either way it's bad all around," I stated looking at her. "Do you know how to protect yourself?"

Alicia looked at me with an odd expression on her face. I know it was a weird question, but I knew Alicia. She wasn't exactly a fighter and I didn't want her to get hurt in this new era. Plus, maybe it would get her mind off of things. She could focus on something else than wallowing around over Matt or this stupid thing.

"A little…why?" Alicia asked raising an eyebrow as I pointed to the burial site.

"I don't want you or anyone in this house ending up like that." I stated, "If you want, I can teach you what I know."

"Reid, since when do you have fighting experience?"

"I was in wrestling throughout high school dork," I replied with a grin.

"And that qualifies you as a self-defense teacher?" Alicia shot back playfully.

"At this rate, I think any type of fighting experience qualifies you as a self-defense teacher," I joked as she smiled.

"Sure, let's do it then," Alicia replied as I genuinely smiled for the first time in forever.

()

"Goddamn, 13 people in this house?" I overheard the military men talk to Madison and Travis. "Family reunion started during this?"

"You could call it that," Travis replied.

"Names of the people in the household?" the other guard asked in a much polite tone.

"I'm Madison Clark, this is Travis Manawa," Madison began. "I have my children. Nicholas and Alicia Clark. His child, Christopher Manawa-"

"My ex wife Liza Manawa," Travis said waiting for a sarcastic remark to appear.

The rowdy military man was about to comment until the one writing down the names nudged him roughly on the shoulder.

"A family we picked up from the crossfire, Daniel Salazar, his wife Griselda Salazar, and their daughter Ofelia Salazar," Travis continued.

"And then my children's friends, Reid Sumners and Larkin Dixon."

"You said…Larkin Dixon?" piped up the one writing as I looked at him.

"Yes, and their friends Allen Jones, and his son Finn Jones." Madison finished off quickly.

"Whoo, 13 in total. Once we clear out a house of those damn suckers, we might split it up and give you all a break from each other." the first soldier said, "Name's First Lieutenant Irvine. This is Sergeant Ortiz. We are in charge of this block. You need anything let us know. The assholes up there won't get to you until days later."

I took a good look at Sergeant Ortiz before they left. The way he said Larkin's name irked me. Like he knew her or something. I would ask her later tonight about it. I stepped away from them and went into the living room. I started planning what me and Alicia would do on her first day of training, and soon this craziness was leaving my mind.

()

"Can I ask again why we are being moved?" Larkin snapped at Lt. Irvine as she set her bags in the house.

Just like Lt. Irvine said earlier, there was too many people in the house and he decided to move us into a separate area. Larkin didn't agree with it and was throwing a fit. She asked why the Salazars got to stay, when we actually knew the family. Irvine literally ignored the hard-headed woman and asked us men if we were all set up. We said we were good and he left us to the home. I looked around. It was definitely eerie since the house next to us had bodies shipped out. I'm assuming the monster yesterday night got to them first before us. Our house was small, but efficient. It looked like a family was nestled here until yesterday. We decided to look around, so I decided to go upstairs. Larkin had beaten me to it, but had a frown on her face when I joined her. She was looking inside a room. I looked in it.

It was a nursery.

A beautiful, untouched nursery.

Larkin walked in and saw a couple of sonogram pictures on the dresser. Most likely the baby hadn't been born yet, but from the looks of the finished nursery was almost here. I saw a picture of the proud parents. A dark skinned man wrapping his arms around his wife's belly with happiness on their faces. Larkin sighed and walked out of the room. Trigger sat by my feet as I looked around. After admiring the small space, I closed the door and locked it from the inside. That way nobody, not even the army men, would mess with that small haven. After inspecting the house, we decided on rooms. AJ called the couch, he offered to take watch in the front in case anything happened. Finn was going to take the guest room downstairs. That left me and Larkin with the master bedroom upstairs. There were two bathrooms, so it worked out well.

Larkin and I moved our things upstairs and saw the huge bed in the middle of the room. She called her side and Trigger followed. I was stuck with the left side, but honestly didn't care. As long as I got sleep I was good. Larkin and I laid in the bed and talked about things. She apologized for being angry earlier, but I forgave her. Shit happens. Then I remembered about Sergeant Ortiz. I sat up.

"Do you know anybody by the name of Ortiz?" I asked as she gave me a funny look.

"Uh…no not really isn't Travis' ex wife last name Ortiz?" She asked as I shook my head.

"No not her. Older guy, works for the military, buzz but and blue eyed?" I asked giving her some image to work with as she shook her head.

"Not that I recall. Why? Someone claims to know me?" Larkin asked as I sighed.

"No, Madison said your name and one of the military guys asked her to repeat it. Like he knew you or something." I replied as she shrugged.

"Maybe if I see a face? Not to sure on that one bud," Larkin replied nonchalantly. "Want to go see what AJ and Finn are up too?"

"Sure," I answered getting up and heading down the stairs.

As I headed down the stairs, I remembered I still haven't told Larkin about my family. But decided against it. I didn't need to bring it up over and over again anyways.


	6. Chapter 5

_**Inferno**_

 _ **Rated: T**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own FTWD, TWD, or any fandoms that may pop up. I just own my characters.**_

 _ **A/N: Chapter will be written in both Reid's and Larkin's POV. I've also incorporated a flashback in Reid's POV so there's no confusion. I will tell you guys it's been hectic on my end, and I'm worried this chapter might reflect that (hopefully it doesn't, but fair warning). Shout out to the Guest who reviewed my story and asked if I was a pro-wrestling fan. Indeed, I am. And that's where AJ and Finn's characters came from, they're based off loosely of them. :) Once again I appreciate the reviews and views! Any comments, questions, and concerns can be left in my DM or in the review and I'll be glad to answer them in the Author's Notes. Until next time my readers! Enjoy!**_

 _ **Chapter Five: Containment (Day One)**_

 **(REID'S POV)**

I felt movement and rustling in the bed. It wasn't bad until Larkin accidentally kicked me in bed. I yawned as I looked at the clock on the table. It was 6:30 in the morning. What the hell was Larking doing up at 6:30? I shifted in bed and sat up as I saw her on the edge of the bed putting her sneakers on. She was dressed to go running. Where the hell was she going to run? Larkin pulled her hair in a ponytail and Trigger waited for her to finish up. She noticed I was awake and told me to go back to sleep. I yawned once more and shook my head.

"No use now I'm awake," I replied rubbing my eyes. "What are you doing?"

"Going for a run," Larkin stated as I sighed and ran a hand through my messy hair.

"Don't get your ass in trouble, PLEASE, if not for your sake, my sake please." I stressed out the importance as Larkin looked at me.

"I won't, besides I'll have Trigger beside me. You'll keep me out of trouble right boy?" Larkin asked as her dog barked happily.

I noticed Trigger was wearing a fluorescent jacket. Larkin noticed me looking at it.

"Irvine told me to make him wear it so nobody would take him." She stated, "He knows he's a service dog. Other military don't."

"When did you see Irvine?" I asked thinking Larkin loathed the man.

"Uh…" she began as she tried to dodge the question. "Yesterday. After you fell asleep. I went and sat on the porch and Irvine saw me with Trigger and gave me the jacket for him."

"Oh," I said not believing her bullshit excuse.

If anything Larkin waited till I fell asleep and went out to investigate what was going on despite the settled curfew. Then she probably got caught by Irvine. I knew her like a book. And that's probably what this run was going to be as well. More investigating. Larkin said her goodbye and I fell back asleep. I would wake up in another hour to get ready and head over to Madison's house.

()

 _"Of all the fucking days," I whispered as I pulled up to the jail._

 _Today was my birthday. My 16th birthday. And I was ending it driving to a jail cell. Why? Because Larkin decided to do something stupid. This was the 4th time this month alone. She started getting picked up by the cops about two months ago. First time was a misunderstanding. Second time we let it slide. The third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth? That's when we started getting pissed off. When I got the call from Chief Levesque and her, I didn't even bother to tell my mom. Grandpa just told me to go pick her up and we would talk about it in the morning. I parked and luckily I still looked presentable even though I was wearing my basketball shorts and a plain tee shirt. I got out of the car and walked inside the facility._

 _"Ya know, if you cut down on the Dunkin Donuts you probably would've caught me quicker," I heard Larkin snicker and I could tell already she was drunk out of her mind._

 _"I'm sorry for her STUPIDITY," I stressed out the last word as Larkin stopped smiling and shut up._

 _I wasn't in the mood. I had a great day and just to have it turn to shit. The officer was about to tell me he couldn't give me any information because of my age, but then Chief Levesque took over and brought me to his office. Disorderly conduct, underage drinking, and over a thousand dollars in property damages. From what Larkin said, a guy was talking smack to her and she threw him over the bar counter and began attacking. I muttered underneath my breath how stupid this was and signed off the papers for her in my grandpa's name. Chief Levesque said he would put in a good word to the judge to let her off easy, but I wondered why bother? She was just going to do something stupid again. I asked how much the bail would be, and gave Levesque the money so he could pay the bail bondsmen (I couldn't because I was underage). After he returned with the receipt and leftover change, he unlocked the jail cell and I took Larkin right out. I apologized to the officers and rushed her to the car before she could do anything else stupid._

 _After we settled into the car, Larkin went on about how stupid the guy at the bar was, and how stupid someone called the cops when she was handling things herself. I stayed silent. Once she figured out I wasn't talking to her, she shut up. When I pulled up to the estate and entered the gates, she questioned why I was so silent. I parked the car and sighed heavily and angrily. I didn't want to yell. That wasn't my intention. She kept pushing my buttons, and I looked at her._

 _"Larkin, what's today?"_

 _"Uh…Friday?" she replied stupidly._

 _"Friday what?"_

 _"I don't know why?"_

 _"It's my birthday Larkin! Are you serious?!" I exclaimed at her. "You didn't even remember and I'm ending my birthday picking you up from a jail cell!"_

 _"Oh shit was that today? Reid I'm sorry! Work's been so busy-!"_

 _"Work my ass! When you supposedly "WORK" you go to a bar afterwards and drink your ass off and end up acting like a stupid fool! I don't know what has gotten into you but it's getting old. Grow up. You're 19. Act like it-"_

 _"You know WHY I drink Reid?" Larkin barked out. "HUH? You think I DRINK for the hell of it?"_

 _"Well Larkin how the fuck am I supposed to know what's going on if you push me away?!" I exclaimed as Larkin opened the car door and started walking towards the gate._

 _I got out the car and called out to her, "Where are you going?!"_

 _"Since this family thinks I'm nothing but trouble I'm fucking leaving!" Larkin screeched. "I thought out of everyone YOU would understand! Guess not. Who fucking cares about me right?"_

 _"Larkin! Come back!" I hollered as I saw Larkin ignoring my calls and walking out the gates._

 _I didn't even bother going after her. She needed to figure herself out. I was done. I already had Nick to worry about, he was hanging out with some dudes who did pot recently and I was trying to steer him away. He was talking about trying some harder drugs. I sent my grandpa a text Larkin stormed off and went to my house me and my mom shared on the property. I would tell her about Larkin later. If anything, my mom needs to call Larkin's dad and see if he could talk some sense into her. I knew her uncle was a drunk, but that didn't mean it was hereditary did it?_

 **(LARKIN'S POV)**

"Get back in your house, curfew ends at 7am!" barked one of the soldiers on control as I raised an eyebrow.

This wasn't even a soldier, he looked like a kid with two of his buddies. They dressed the part, but no way in hell was I taking orders from a guy in uniform with no badges. THEY weren't supposed to be making the demands. I wasn't that stupid. I stopped in my tracks and Trigger growled a little as they came near me. I petted his head to calm him before he went ape shit crazy on them.

"Moyer's said it ended at 6 am you liar!" I snapped back at the asshole cocking my head towards the other direction seeing someone else taking a daily run as well. "I run at 6:30 am DAILY. Not going to switch because some dumbass tells me too!"

"You watch your mouth-!"

"And you watch yours! I only take orders from YOUR bosses." I stated as I took out a piece of paper, "I got confirmation from Lt. Irvine himself."

The soldier snatched my paper out of my hands and read it. Then he had the balls to tear up the piece of paper and threw it in my face. I was about to give them a piece of my mind…

"What's going on here?" boomed out a voice as the soldier's eyes went from ruthless to plain fear.

I looked in the direction the voice came from and was baffled for a second. No way. That couldn't be. The man had 'Ortiz' written on his uniform and he held a huge ass rifle over his arm. The most noticeable feature I saw was his snake tattoo coming up his neck. He had a small scruff on his face and a pissed off expression to match. The soldier who was talking shit gulped as Ortiz's eyes stared right at him.

"I asked a question, I demand an answer!" Ortiz barked as the soldier recomposed himself.

"This woman is cutting curfew sir! She is refusing to go back to her household!" the soldier responded as the other two soldiers agreed.

"It's approximately 6:58am. Curfew ended at 6:00am. Residents are able to leave their households as long as they remain within the perimeter and use extreme caution." Ortiz stated. "You're not even a soldier, you're a damn call-in. YOU don't have any authority to argue with civilians. WE DO. Now dismiss!"

The soldiers practically ran after Ortiz finished his speech. I was left speechless for a second. Suddenly I got a good look at Ortiz's face. Holy shit.

"Keith?!" I exclaimed as Keith chuckled and grinned.

"Small world huh?" he asked looking at me, "Been a while."

"What the hell are you doing in Los Angeles?" I asked in shock.

Keith Fernandez.

Standing next to me in all his glory. I wonder where he picked the Ortiz name from. He was a legend in the underground district. He started off as one of Rodman's goons until Lucco made him an offer he couldn't refuse. We never fought against each other or alongside each other during fights, but we did go on certain missions together. And slept with each other a few times. But we remained distant once our mission was complete. We were acquaintances, made small talk here and there. He left about two years before I did after his grandfather passed away. He wanted to be back with his family full time. Even got married and had a little girl. But what was he doing being a military dog? If anything this guy knew numbers, he could've been an accountant. I knew he was in the military before he began fighting, but didn't know you could reenlist yourself.

"They stationed me here about a year ago. My family is back at the base." Keith answered. "Last I heard you went back to Georgia?"

"Visited for a while, but I came back when Lucco started getting sick." I replied a bit sadly.

"Heart disease right?" Keith asked as I nodded.

"Yeah…apparently he kept quiet about it for a while." I replied.

"I visited his grave, left some flowers-"

"Psh, he would've kicked your ass if he saw you do that," I replied with a chuckle.

"Good old Lucco," Keith began.

"What's out there Keith?" I asked him looking in the direction beyond the gates.

"Dead. Hell if I know," Keith shrugged.

"What if there's people out there Keith? What happens to them?" I questioned as he raised an eyebrow.

"Survive or die." Keith stated.

"Keith, we need to help them." I started urgently.

"Not my problem. My only problem is this camp." Keith stated harshly as I prepared myself to argue.

"What's the military planning to do?" I demanded looking him straight in the eye.

Keith eyed me and didn't say anything. I took his silence as a warning. There was no way I was staying in this god forsaken enclosure after that. I was considering it, but Keith's answer was all I needed to be persuaded otherwise.

"Answer me." I demanded as Keith sighed heavily and shifted from one foot to the other.

"Don't be afraid to shoot," Keith warned. "If anything major happens I promise you'll be the first one to know."

"Don't do me wrong Keith or I swear to God I will feed those monsters your head," I spat out as I left and continued my run.

Maybe that wasn't the most welcoming goodbye he wanted to hear. But Keith knew me. And he knew not to double cross me. I saw idiot Irvine talking with his buddies while I ran past them. He tried to badger me but I ignored him and continued to run. This enclosement was 6 miles long, 3 miles each way. Not that big. After I ran into the second fence, I looked outside. It was silent and empty; I didn't know how to feel about it. It made me feel sad. Awkward. Anxious. Trigger nudged me away and we walked back to our home.

As I was walking, I noticed how quiet and calm the rest of the neighborhood was. The houses with huge red X's sprayed on them had infected when the army men came. They had ridden this area from monsters yesterday, so now we were 'accident-free'. I wondered beyond the walls…what was it like? There had to be people alive. My thoughts slowly fluttered to my father and my uncle, and I frowned. No. They were going to be okay. I knew they were. I finally made it back to the house and saw Nick sitting on his front door steps. He waved. And I waved back.

I wasn't in the mood to socialize.

 **(REID'S POV)**

"You're teaching Alicia how to fight?" Madison asked me as I waited for the girl to get dressed.

I nodded and lazily sat back on the chair I was sitting in. Even in the middle of God knows what's happening to the world, Alicia took her time getting dressed. It was a self-defense lesson not a beauty pageant. But that was Alicia for you. She never went anywhere without looking presentable. I looked up at Madison who was drinking out of a mug and nodded.

"Yeah kind of. Figured I would put my knowledge to good use, don't want anything happening to her," I replied.

"I'm all for it. Travis was hesitant, but the girl has to learn somehow." Madison confided in me.

"Travis is more of a lover, not a fighter huh?" I asked as she shrugged.

"He has his moments…more or less." Madison replied, "How are you guys at the new house?"

"It's alright. Surviving. AJ's picking up some rations today."

"Same. Ofelia and I are going out in a few. Liza has volunteered to be the neighborhood doctor, so she's hardly here."

"Nick and Chris?" I asked totally forgetting about them until now.

"Nick is outside, Chris is…actually I don't know where he is." Madison said thinking about it but not freaking out.

Finally I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Madison excused herself as Alicia entered the kitchen. She was literally just wearing a pair of yoga shorts, a loose tank top, and her hair in a messy ponytail. That made her take forever to get ready? It took me a minute to refocus. She DID look very pretty in her choice of attire. We both headed to the backyard and made small talk. Finally once we got in position, I made her take a stance and started explaining the different techniques to self-defense and showing her.

I explained to her a little more about some moves and practiced with her. She wasn't a natural, but then again she never really had to use it. After I felt she was comfortable with it, we took a break. When we went inside we saw Travis repainting the wall where the brains of the monster had splattered and stained. Alicia had to go get something from Nick's room so I sat on the couch waiting for her. I saw Daniel in there looking around and didn't really pay him attention.

 **(LARKIN'S POV)**

When I walked inside the house I greeted Finn, AJ, and Chris and began walking up the stairs…

Wait.

"Chris?" I did a double take as the teenager smiled at me and raised an eyebrow.

What in the hell was he doing here?

"Hey," Chris greeted me again as I nodded acknowledging his existence.

"I invited him over, I saw him bored out of his mind on top of his roof," AJ explained as I nodded again and shrugged my shoulders.

"Cool…I'm going to go take a shower." I replied as Trigger stayed downstairs with the guys.

As I was showering, I closed my eyes and enjoyed the warmth. Something told me this wouldn't last long and I should soak it in while I could. I was also planning my escape for tonight. Or at least how I would try. Tonight I would scope out the area and see which areas weren't crawling with soldiers. Then I would escape. And see exactly was out there beyond the gates. I wasn't going to be a caged animal without knowing what was going on. And I definitely wasn't going to pester Keith about it either if he wasn't going to help.

I had just gotten dressed when I heard a knock on the door. I assumed it was Reid and opened the door wearing one of my dad's old baggy button up shirts with no pants on. I was drying my hair with a towel and didn't notice it was…

AJ.

"Jesus girl put some pants on!" AJ exclaimed as I busted out laughing.

"My room, my rules. I thought you were Reid." I said as I walked out of the bathroom to find some shorts.

"Are you sure you and Reid aren't dating?" Aj questioned as I pulled on a pair of cargo camo shorts.

"Nah, not my type." I replied nonchalantly, "He's like my brother."

"That's what Wendy said about us," AJ teased with a sad smile and I rolled my eyes.

"No seriously me and Reid aren't like that. We're just close," I stated as AJ accepted it.

"Anyways, Madison invited us over for dinner. Wanted to know if you wanted to join?"

"I'll pass." I replied looking out the window.

"Look I know you're adjusting, we all are, maybe you opening up a little more will help?" AJ suggested as I looked at him.

"AJ, I'm perfectly fine being distant. The only people I care about are you, Reid, and Finn."

"What about that Nick kid? Finn said you were good friends with him."

"Well I mean yeah he's in the circle too…"

"Give everyone else a chance. You gave me a chance right?" AJ beckoned and I sighed in defeat.

That just means I had to scope out the place after curfew.

"Fine, I'll go." I muttered as AJ smiled and walked out.

 **(REID'S POV)**

Larkin stayed cooped up in the house most of the day. At least that's what I heard from Finn when I saw him and Chris sitting outside. Madison was gracious enough to invite everyone for dinner. Her and AJ split their meat rations in order to make a beef stew with vegetables for everyone. I saw Chris walking in with AJ and Finn, talking like they were best friends. I raised an eyebrow until I saw Larkin looking indifferent to the situation. She looked like her mind was stuck on something else. I was about to go over and ask her what was up until Alicia sat by me with a bowl in her hand. I thanked her and refocused.

Larkin had taken a seat by Nick on the couch. They were talking. And I saw Larkin smile for the first time since yesterday. Nick actually looked relaxed. I chuckled at the sight of them. I remembered before Gloria, Nick was smitten by Larkin; he just never went for it because he thought it would be weird for him to make a move on an older woman. And he just turned 18 at the time, before his recent stint with drugs, and was thinking after he changed his lifestyle maybe he sand Larkin could be something. But then Gloria swooped in and he was back on the drug trade.

Suddenly Larkin's eyes lit up. Lit up like she got that pony she always wanted for Christmas lit up. I didn't like that kind of look in her eye. What did Nick tell her? Or what did she get Nick to do for her? I excused myself from the conversation Alicia and I were having to see what was going on. I casually strutted towards them and sat on the empty seat besides Larkin. They greeted me. Nick started eating his portion as Larkin picked at hers. Larkin never turned down free food. Especially meat.

"How was your day Lark?" I asked as Larkin shrugged.

"Went for a run, chilled at home all day," Larkin replied as she looked at me, "How'd training Alicia go?"

"You're training Alicia?" Nick asked shifting his attention towards me.

"Just teaching her some self-defense, nothing huge," I responded getting the brotherly overprotective glare from him.

"Oh," Nick replied.

I got a weird vibe from the two and even though I could sense it, they weren't giving up. I decided to just shake the weirdness off and went back to my seat beside Alicia. I noticed AJ was talking to Liza nonstop since she returned from making the rounds. Travis kept eyeing them behind Madison's back. Daniel and Ofelia came down to retrieve the food then hide back in Alicia's room with Griselda. A little while later, AJ said curfew was in 10 minutes and we needed to get home. I said my goodbyes to everyone and walked with the group back to the house. I saw Larkin hug Nick goodbye and she fell behind a little bit.

Please dear God, don't let those two run off together.

 **(LARKIN'S POV)**

Nick was in with me.

He wanted to explore what was beyond the gates as well.

AND he found a small patch of fence that we could crawl under to get out.

Reid knew something was up during dinner, and that wasn't going to make it easy to escape tonight since we were in the same room. I was going to wait until he was deep asleep and sneak out. As Reid and I headed upstairs, Trigger was already asleep on the floor. I smiled at my dog. What would I do without him? Reid got into bed as I did and we told each other goodnight.

I waited, and waited until I heard Reid steadily breathing. I slowly turned around and looked. He was asleep alright. And thank God he went to sleep fast too. I quietly got back up and quickly put my shoes on. I grabbed my backpack full of supplies and necessities just in case anything happened out there. I also slung my crossbow over my shoulder. It made less noise than a gun and would serve me better. I made my way down the stairs and mentally slapped myself. AJ slept in the living room right by the door. How would I get out now? I rethought my process and decided to go out through the kitchen door that led to the backyard.

After successfully getting out of the house, I unlocked the fence, closed it, and hid in a bush before any military men saw me. Once the coast was clear I ran across the street to Nick's house. Like he promised, he was waiting in an alley between his house and another house. He greeted me and I greeted him back. We began creeping along the alleys staying close to the fence. Every time we saw light or voices, we would dodge ourselves into a bush or dark area to be unseen. Finally after a while Nick and I came to a part of the fence that looked heavily messed with. I wondered if someone tried to escape during the day. Nick saw my face.

"I was in the house earlier today," Nick cocked his head to the house behind us, "Guy was trying to escape. The soldiers came and got him."

That answered my question as we both looked around for military. Nobody was in sight. I messed with the fence for a bit before it finally caved in enough for me and Nick to crawl underneath it. We saw a flash of light and quickly scurried into a nearby bush. A patrol car whizzed past us and once they were gone I felt like I could breathe again. That was close as fuck. Once they were gone, I reached into my backpack and gave Nick a small flashlight. I held my crossbow in front of me and beckoned Nick to follow. We began walking. Where? Hell if we knew. It felt good not to be caged in though. It was quiet beyond the gates. Not a soul in sight.

"Are you afraid?" Nick suddenly piped up as I lowered my crossbow a bit as the moon shone it's light on us and our surroundings.

"Truth or lie?" I asked.

"Truth," Nick seriously said as I thought about it.

"I was afraid…now I've just accepted it as the new reality." I replied. "You?"

"Same," Nick answered, "You would never expect civilization to fall like this. We had all the technology, all the medicines, all the brains in the world…and yet this virus wiped us all out."

"Is this God's way of punishing us?" I began, "Or his version of the rapture?"

"Psh, don't be silly. If that were the case he took all the good ones and we're in hell," Nick joked as I looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't belong in heaven anyways," I stated without thinking as it was Nick's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"What's the worst you've done? Hit a deer with your car?" Nick asked.

Of course he would think that. Nick didn't know about my past. No one did except for Reid, my father, and my uncle. Everyone thinks Larkin Dixon is this straight edge, goody two shoes with a stable mindset. But they were wrong. So far from the truth.

"Or maybe God and the devil made a deal. Maybe this is the ultimate test to see if we would still believe in Him, while Satan fucks shit up." I said directing the conversation away from my previous statement.

Suddenly we came upon a neighborhood and saw a very small glow come from the inside of one of the houses. Nick and I stopped dead in our tracks. We hid in some bushes right by the window as we heard voices from inside. To Nick's dismay, I peeked inside and instantly frowned. From the crack of the heavy curtain, I saw a woman holding a little girl close to her and a man looking exhausted. I took a deep breath and slung my crossbow around my shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Nick asked as I got up and looked around for patrol.

"Going to see if they need help." I replied as Nick pulled on my shirt.

"Larkin no!"

"Not the boss of me kid," I hissed as I heard Nick mutter under his breath while following me.

I went to the front door and lightly knocked on the door. I heard their voices stop immediately and the fire go out. I waited a couple of seconds to no avail.

"Not military. Not infected. Just a normal civilian like you. Promise." I said through the door as Nick hastily looked around hoping no one else heard that.

Finally after what seemed like forever a man opened the door. He ushered us inside quickly and we dodged in there. I put down my crossbow and he put up his pocket knife. I put my hands up as Nick followed suit as the man nodded. We were in agreement no weapons would be used. The man looked older than me, probably Finn's age, with a stocky figure, tanned skin and long black hair pulled back into a ponytail. I frowned as I saw the little girl. She looked like she was in deep pain, a grimace on her face. The woman was the same age as the man with pale skin, and wavy dark brown hair.

"I'm Larkin…this is my partner Nick," I introduced ourselves.

"I'm Joe, my wife Nancy, and our daughter…Olivia." the man introduced. "She's very sick."

"Is she-?" Nick began.

"Not infected." Joe sternly said and started explaining, "She went to the doctor, and has pneumonia. We haven't been able to get to the doctor since the outbreak started."

"She's gotten worse," Nancy stated as Olivia was coughing uncontrollably.

I frowned as Nick shifted from one foot to the other uncomfortably. I took off my backpack and rummaged through it. I took out some pain killers, but that was about it. I handed it to Joe, who took it graciously. My heart was pained seeing the little girl suffer. I started thinking. The campsite wasn't that far from here. Maybe a mile or two. Maybe I could sneak them in. Have them hide.

"There's a campsite not far from here," I stated, "They have medical supplies. I know a nurse-"

"Is it safe?" Joe asked as I looked at him.

"It's…run by the soldiers." I ended as he shook his head.

"No. Soldiers can kiss my ass." Joe muttered as his wife told him to watch his language.

"Look…your daughter needs help. I know somebody that can help." I said, "Not military."

Joe looked me in the eye and was uncertain. Nick tugged at my shirt again, whispering it was getting late.

"I'll be back tomorrow. Think of an answer until then," I replied then said a quick goodbye.

Once me and Nick were out of hearing range and close to the fence, he sighed heavily.

"Larkin, how are we going to sneak them in?" Nick asked, "Don't be making false promises-"

"I'm not." I snapped at him, "That house you were in? We can have them lay low there. Military doesn't patrol there often. If they play their cards right, they have a place that's safe."

"What about rations?"

"I can share my half with them."

"Don't you think you've bitten off more than you can chew?" Nick asked as we came towards the fence.

I stopped and looked at him.

"Don't question my abilities Nicholas," I stated as we went under the fence and back home.

 **(REID'S POV)**

I was pacing in the bedroom waiting for Larkin to return. If it wasn't for Trigger's whining, I wouldn't have even noticed she was gone. And that's what she was planning to do. Come back home and pretend nothing happened. And I would bet 5 bucks she took Nick along with her. She'd be gone for more than a couple of hours, it was around 1:30 am. I heard the door open from the kitchen and figured she went out the backyard. I heard her footsteps come up the stairs and she stopped when she saw the light was on. She opened the door, and I looked at her from the edge of the bed I had sat on. We were quiet for a second, her eyes were big, and an 'oh shit' look on her face.

"Care to explain where you were?" I asked calmly and saw Larkin's face drastically change.

She was ready for a fight.

"None of your damn business." She muttered.

"None of my business?! Larkin, I thought something happened to you!" I exclaimed shocking her.

"Reid calm down you'll wake-"

"I don't care who I wake up. No Larkin. We aren't doing this shit again!"

Larkin's eyes narrowed. She knew exactly what I was talking about. Lying to me. Leaving without saying where she was going. Letting me go insane wondering if she was dead or alive.

"It's not like that Reid…"

"Then where did you go?!" I demanded as Larkin leaned against the door.

She muttered something.

"What?" I asked.

"I went…outside."

"Outside?" I asked as she sighed frustrated.

"Outside the fence Reid!" she shouted as I was taken back.

It registered in my mind.

"LARKIN ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" I exclaimed, "WHY?!"

"Because I'm not gonna be kept in a cage!" she responded back, "I had to see for myself what the hell is out there Reid. I don't believe the military men are telling the truth! There's people out there!"

"That's not our problem Larkin!"

"Not our problem? You act like what I did was a bad-"

"Larkin that is a bad fucking thing! What if you got caught? What if you got hurt? Do you ever think about your actions or do you just go by instinct?! Cause that's gonna get you fucking killed!" I shouted at her.

"Hasn't gotten me killed yet you jackass!" She fought back.

"Answer me this: WHO suggested this idea? You or Nick?"

"Nick didn't go with me."

That was a lie.

"Nick didn't go with you, which is why I saw him scurry to his backyard?" I said as she was fuming.

"You don't own me Reid!" She shouted.

"I'm only looking after you Larkin!" I shot back.

"Hey, HEY! What's going on here?!" came AJ's booming voice.

We heard AJ knocking on the door and reluctantly opened it after Larkin wouldn't budge. He looked half-asleep, his hair all messy, and dressed in his pajama pants with no shirt. Finn followed after him wearing a shirt and boxers. I honestly didn't mean to wake them up, but we did. Larkin stormed out of the room and down the stairs. I ignored their curious stares and sat back on the bed. I hadn't even realize I had gotten up from it. AJ sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Lovers quarrel?" Finn asked as I shot him a death glare, "I'm kidding. What happened?"

"Larkin went out outside." I replied not going into further detail.

"After curfew? Fucking figures," AJ said and sighed heavily. "That girl doesn't know when to relax. She's been so jittery lately."

"I've never seen her so stressed either," Finn added in as I had to remind myself they've only seen the 'good' side of Larkin.

"Look I'm sorry we woke you up. It just scared the shit out of me." I told the two men.

"Lucky it was you and not me." AJ replied, "I'll try talking to her. But for everyone's convenience, she's sleeping with me downstairs. You stay up here. You two need space."

I agreed and heard AJ's footsteps go down the stairs. I heard light bickering between the two as Finn rubbed his eyes.

"You remind me of how I was with my sister," Finn began as he yawned, "Her name was Stephanie. She was younger than me by a couple of months. I was so overprotective of her, she hated it."

"Bet she wasn't as worse as Larkin though." I replied, "Where is she?"

"She died in a car accident when I was a kid." Finn stated a bit sadly, "I lost my parents too. Had to move in with my grandparents for a while until college."

"Sorry to hear that."

"It's life. Happened a long time ago Reid."

"What university did you go to?" I asked changing the subject.

"Nah, went to a small junior college in Montana." Finn replied shocking the hell out of me. Finn didn't strike me as a country boy. "Got an associates in business then decided to move out here. I always wanted to be by the ocean."

"Your grandparents were still out there?" I asked.

"No thank God with all this shit going around. Grandpa died from old age. Same with grandma. That was back in my late 20s."

"WHAT?" I exclaimed taking his features in. "How old are you?!"

"I'm 35," Finn replied with a grin, "I get that a lot."

We were there for a second in silence until Finn began walking out of the room.

"I'm sure this will blow over kiddo. Larkin isn't the type to hold grudges," Finn stated, "Catch you tomorrow."

After Finn closed my door, I laid back in bed. I was probably going to sleep in a little later after all this commotion. As I sat there thinking, I chuckled at Finn's statement about Larkin not holding grudges.

Ha.

If he only knew.

 **(BIRD'S EYE POV)**

Nick quietly entered the house from the backyard sliding door. After he went inside, he looked around to make sure nobody was there. As he walked towards the stairs, he heard someone's footsteps. Nick quickly went back to the kitchen and grabbed a mug. He filled it up with water and began drinking it, while trying to be casual. He saw it was Travis, and loosened up. Travis gave him a confused look.

"Everything okay?" Travis asked as Nick nodded.

"Yeah, wanted a glass of water," Nick nonchalantly said as he began walking up the stairs. "See you in the morning."

After Nick left, Travis was about to walk back to his room until he spotted the sliding door. The lock was unlatched. He swore he locked it before everyone went to bed. He looked back towards the stairs, wondering if he should ask Nick if he went outside. He decided against it and went back to the room.

It was going to be a busy day tomorrow.


End file.
